SPR Case File Status: Open
by Momomarie16
Summary: The ghost hunting team is back in action and as new cases take place the group grows closer together. Involves some romance betwwen the usual pairings.
1. Chapter 1

Hey this is my first ever Fan fiction so here goes!

Oh and I do not own Ghost hunt or any of its characters!

SPR Case files status: Open

**Chapter 1:** Welcome back

Mai sat at her desk with the file lying on her lap out of sight, her eyes kept glancing towards her boss's office door. She could hear her heartbeat in her ears and was barely able to keep herself still. Fear and anticipation ran through her as the door opened to show the face of her irate boss.

_Flashback_

Mai stood in front of SPR pacing back in froth thinking of the best way to greet Naru, who the hospital released that morning and allowed to return to work.

"Hi, Naru glad you're back…Or maybe… Hey Naru, I can't wait to get back to work…" Mai sighed realizing the chances of any of her greetings getting a real response was, zero. "Mai just go in there and tell him you're Glad he's back." With all the courage she reached for the door handle.

"Mai, Tea"

_That jerk, I didn't even have the door open and he's already bossing me around! _The door slammed behind her as she stomped inside.

"And Mai..."

"Yes?" her heart sped up at the sound of his voice.

"You're late." Mai spun towards the clock and realized her pacing outside had made her late by five minutes.

"Glad to see the hospital hasn't changed you a bit." She snapped back at him sarcastically. She stalked over to the kitchen and began making the tea she hadn't had to make in so long.

Lin's office door opened and he walked over to Mai with a small orange bottle in hand. "Mai take two of these pills to Naru with his tea every four hours please, and make sure he takes them."

"Okay, but Lin why didn't you give these to Naru so he can take them himself? I doubt it would be diffcult for him to remember to take them." She looked up only to receive a pointed look before he returned to his office.

Naru sat at his desk, his attention occupied by the file lying up on his desk. He only glanced up when Mai entered and reached for his tea without a word. Instead of tea he received two small pills. He stared at them for a moment before shoving them back at his assistant. Suprising Mai for a moment but she shoved his hand with the pills back towards him.

"Mai, I asked you to bring me tea not _these_." The way he referred to the pills was so openly disgusted it shocked Mai Speechless for a moment.

"Yes but Lin told me to bring the medicine to you…" Mai knew Naru wasn't one to feel concerned over his health but surely he wasn't going to act like a child when it came to medicine.

"Mai I'm fine without _those_, so don't bother." Contrary to what she thought he was going to act very childish.

"No, Naru you have to take the pills."

"I won't."

"Naru, it's only two pills, it won't affect you to just take them."

"No"

"Naru take the pills."

"No", with that said he placed the pills on the farthest edge of the table and returned to the file with his hand open, expecting his tea.

Mai just stood there mouth agape. Slowly her shock receded and she felt a rush of anger. "Naru, these pills are for your own good and I don't care if _you_ don't think you need them because the doctor said you did!" she sucked in air before beginning again. "Being the doctors are professionals, in the medical field I thought you were _mature_ enough to accept and follow their advice!" she was breathing hard, her face red with anger.

"Mai, you may go." He didn't even look up but the twitch of his eye revealed his irritation.

"No," this earned her another twitch, "after you take those pills." He continued to ignore her and read his file. Suddenly his file was gone, bringing his attention up to Mai, who was clutching the stolen file to her chest.

"Mai." His voice filled with warning, "the file, now."

"T-take the p-pills." She managed and then fled the room leaving the tea behind.

_End of Flashback_

Naru stormed up to her desk and placed both hands upon it with an audible slap. "Mai give me back the file."

"Pills," was her short reply.

"File," was his.

"Pills"

"Mai" he warned.

"Naru" was her hurried reply.

"File"

"Pills"

Lin stood in his office door watch the amusing scene. He knew Naru wouldn't take the pills from past experiences but had hoped Mai could find a way. Lin chuckled; _I wasn't expecting her to act so brave but now it's turned into childish banter._ The chuckle stopped both of the teens who looked in time to see Lin escaping swiftly into his much safer office.

Naru turned back to Mai shot a very angry glare before returning to his office. Mai sighed in relief a little too soon because he soon returned with a more ferocious glare than before. He showed the pills in his hand briefly to his stunned assistant before tipping them back into his mouth with a large gulp of tea. His hand shot back out expectantly, a glare still fixed to his face. Tentatively the file was laid in his hand and Mai dared not look up into Naru's glare.

"Mai"

"Yes?" her eyes only made it to his black shirt before shooting back down.

"Tea," he then turned beginning to walk away only to stop again "and don't you dare tell anyone what just occurred."

"Sure thing boss." She looked up to glance at his emotionless mask that was back in place.

A small knock at the front door caught their attention and Mai quickly rushed to the door to welcome the possible client.


	2. Chapter 2

Thanks so much Musical Teardrops for the Review!

I hope to be able to update often but when school starts up again that will be more difficult.

Also, I will be writing the names in the story in first to last name order instead of last to first: for example Mai Taniyama, instead of Taniyama Mai.

_Italicized thoughts. _**Bold – dreams. ** If I italicize one word its exaggerated when said. If I bold one word its exaggerated in their thoughts.

I do not own ghost hunt or its characters!

SPR Case File Status: Open

**Chapter 2**: First Case

February, Monday

"Um, is Mister Shibuya available?" the man who spoke was frail and looked very distressed. His thin brown hair stuck out in all directions and his hands kept nervously clenching at his tan suit.

"Yes, come in and sit down. I'll get you some tea." Mai gave a small knock on Lin's door to indicate there was a client. She walked back out with the tea-tray and placed two of the cups in front of Lin and Naru. The third cup she place directly into the nervous hands of their client.

The man took a large gulp of tea before beginning, "I need your help my name is Kenshin Enomoto, my home is haunted by spirits." The sentence came out rushed and his hands trembled more with every word.

"What makes you believe it's a haunting?" Mister Enomoto jumped when Naru spoke spilling some of the tea on his pants.

"My wife told me she saw the g-ghost and soon after she started getting sick. She's not fatally ill but she throws up every day and has a difficult time keeping food down. We went to the doctor assuming it was the flu but he claimed she was healthy." Mai could see he was truly shaken.

"That illness, sounds to me like food poisoning perhaps more than anything else." He looked up at Naru quickly then back down to his lap.

"I-I know but you see that impossible because I've eaten all the same things she has and that's not all that's happened." He paused to see Naru nod his head indicating he can continue. "We'll hear voices from rooms no one's occupying. Then the doors will open and shut by themselves like other people are going in and out of the house and its rooms."

"Is that everything?" Naru asked his voice didn't indicate whether he was going to take the case or not.

"Uh, yes I believe that's everything I've experienced."

"We will be in need of a room to set up in and if possible at least one to sleep in." Mai did an inner leap for joy, _we have a case! Finally!_

* * *

February, Thursday

They had finally arrived at the Enomoto residence, located in a seemingly nice neighborhood. Mai had just suffered a long drive in the van with two of the most antisocial people she has ever met! _I know some people prefer to drive in silence but Lin and Naru take quiet to a whole new level. I can't even sigh without Naru telling me I'm being loud. _

"Mai, stop daydreaming and get to work." Naru was already walking in with a box ignoring her angry grumbling of "…stupid, annoying, self-absorbed, narcissist..."

"Hello, you must be Shibuya Psychic Research; my husband informed me that you would be here arriving today." The woman who spoke was small like her husband. "My name is Naomi Enomoto, Thank you Mister Shibuya for coming all the way here." Her small bow was directed towards Lin, which made Mai reach to cover her smile.

A cough from Naru got her attention, "Miss Enomoto, I am Kazuya Shibuya and the two others here are my assistants," Naru nodded in Lin's direction "Lin Koujo," he turned pointing at Mai, struggling to hold onto the shelves piled in her arms, "and Mai Taniyama."

"Oh, I am so sorry I didn't realize you'd be so young… I mean not that that's bad just surprising!" Mai and Lin could tell she was flustered and trying hard not to offend Naru_. I can understand why she is so worried too because Naru the iceberg is once again showing no emotion. _Mai tried to smile at her but the shelves in her arms blocked her view. Unfortunately the shelves also blocked her view of the ground, so it wasn't surprising to either of her coworkers when her foot caught on something and she started to stumble forwards

Mai's fall was stopped abruptly by two strong arms gripping her shoulders. "If you can't see where you're going don't carry so much, stupid." Mai's face felt hot, _oh geez I fell into Naru. Wait a minute… what did he call me?! I am not stupid! A klutz maybe but stupid I am not. Oh, he is going to get it. _She looked up into a very irritating, smug smirk. If we weren't in front of a client she would call him all sorts of things but alas, they were in front of Miss Enomoto.

"Thank you, _boss_, I don't know what I'd do without your excellent advice," she dropped a third of the bars for the shelves from her arms on top of the box her speechless boss was carrying, "Next time I'll only pick up this much." Her sweet smile went well with the fake admiration her voice portrayed. She stalked past her angry boss, stone faced coworker, and thoroughly confused client into the large house.

_Ha-ha Naru looks livid, I don't know what he said, but Mai will be fuming for a while. _Lin was having a hard time hiding his amusement. He knew Naru liked to tease Mai for her reactions but he also hated to lose. Staring at his expression now, made it obvious he felt that was the closest thing Naru would admit to as his loss.

_That little! I wasn't expecting her to turn around and thank me even if it is insincere._ Naru already felt like he had lost the little fight in the office concerning the pills but now this! _Maybe the hospital did affect me._ He adjusted the now heavier load in his arms dismissing that last thought. He would win one argument before this day was over that he could guarantee.

* * *

Lin had to constantly focus to keep the corners of his lips down as they began setting up base because every time Mai stumbled or did something wrong a snide comment on her intelligence or balance could be herd in a cold tone from Naru. After every remark Mai would purposefully walk over Naru's foot or a shelf would swing in her arms, colliding with whatever happened to be behind her, in other words, Naru. _Naru will have a bruised toe and back after the setting up is over_, of that Lin was sure.

It was obvious to Naru that Mai had decided for the remainder of the day she would give him the silent treatment. Under normal circumstances this would be a blessing but at the moment all he wanted was to make her snap. It wouldn't be long until the other arrived and before that he was determined to make her say something. _I thought insults would work… but I f that won't work, he had other ideas._ Naru turned away to hide his amusement.

Mai was pissed, no pissed wasn't enough, she was furious. _I had decided not to talk to Naru when he got back and usually Naru would to proceed to ignore me as well until my anger cools down, but no today he wants to make his stupid narcissistic presence known!_ She stomped down on the black shoe like a cockroach as she made her way over to a cardboard box.

"Lin, do we have any history on this building that we could use to identify the ghost if there is one?" Naru said his face still turned away.

"Yes, though it might not be very useful. The thing is this house wasn't built so long ago; actually it's only several decades old." Lin scanned the information in the file recently sent by Yasuhara, a college student who occasionally helps out, "but there seemed to have been one death in this house that could relate to the case."

Naru could hear Mai's movements become quieter as she listened in. _Perfect,_ Naru turned his head further away before he responded. "Ah, I assume your referring to _that _family. Yes it is possible _they _could be the cause… of course we should look into the others as well." Naru knew Lin was aware that he had already read the file thoroughly but was glad he was playing along.

"I will inform Yasuhara that he should do an in depth search on all the families that lived here." Lin wasn't sure what his boss was doing but also didn't feel the need to question him.

_Who were **they**__ and what happened that made __**them**__ relevant to the case. _Mai was filled with curiosity and unknowingly her hands had stopped taking out the wires and just sat in her lap. _Couldn't Naru be more specific like he usually is!_

Naru herd the movement behind him stop and was satisfied enough to continue. "I want you to also have him look further into the reason behind the _incident._ There has to be more behind why we can't find _that_ document about _it."_ Lin turned in his chair to look at his boss, _he was acting strange and I wanted to kn-, _Lin's eyes widened at the expression on Naru's face.

"So, um… who are _they_ Naru?" The words left Mai's lips unconsciously and a soon as they did she regretted it. She turned to see a look she never thought Naru would have… ever. He was smiling but it wasn't the angelic one from her dreams, nor was it the occasional smirk he had after teasing her. No, this was a victorious grin that shown in every inch of his face. He had an evil gleam in his eyes and if Mai wasn't surprised by that then she was surprised at how much emotion was playing across Lin's face. Lin was surprised by the expression on the normally expressionless teen, happy to see it there, and was beginning to worry that perhaps Naru was possessed.

"Oh, I didn't realize you were listening, are you willing to talk to me now or are you going to continue to neglect your job by being childish?" His grin had lessened to his usual smirk but the gleam in his eyes remained.

_Ch-childish, __**me**__ being childish! What about him?! He was the one throwing insults trying to bait me! Then withholds information to make me curious enough to ask and he said I am the __**childish **__one!_ Mai was practically frothing at the mouth. _How dare him!_ She stood abruptly and went right in front of him. If she wasn't angry right then she'd be blushing but with full-blown rage backing her up, she was far from shy. She lifted her foot up and stomped it down as hard as possible right on that black leather shoe.

Naru tried hard not to react to the pain but a small wince escaped him, satisfied Mai stomped over to the couch in the small room and curled up her back facing the two men. _I win. I know it was below me to act that way but sometimes around Mai I just don't think about things like that. _Naru's face had finally went back to its normal state and any hint that the previous seen had taken place had never occurred. Lin turned pack to the monitors and the difficult task of untangling the many wires which were left carelessly by Mai.

Mai wasn't going to speak to them anytime soon. She felt how soft the cushions were and realized she didn't get much sleep the night the before and felt too uncomfortable between Lin and Naru to sleep in the car. The others would be here soon and then she'd have to run around gathering info so, a little shut-eye shouldn't be an issue…

**Pain… lots of pain, that's the first thing Mai noticed when she looked through half closed eyes. She could see a wood floor which she was lying on. Something wet and stick covered her legs and pooled underneath her. **_**I'm going to die**_**. Was all she could process through all the pain. She felt cold, dizzy, and very confused. She looked up and saw the chandelier hanging above her, its tiny crystals swaying in an invisible breeze.**

_**Where am I? Why am I in so much pain? It feels like the pain is inside my body not an external wound. **_**She tried to pull herself up but there was no strength in her arms.**_** Help! I need to save it help!**_** Mai paused confused, save what? Why did she feel so desperate to save something? Her mind was becoming foggy as she clung to the last bits of consciousness. **_**I'm dying. **_**As that last thought sunk in she suddenly felt a surge of fear overwhelm her.**

* * *

"Mai... Mai! Hey Mai! Wake up it's time to work! Hey!" the voice sounded very distant to Mai as she struggled to see who was calling her.

She recognized the voice and tried to call out to her older friend, "Monk?" She managed to sit up and saw the rest of her family sitting in the small room. Monk was next to her on the couch, John was talking to Naru and Lin by the monitors, and Ayako was arguing with Masako in the corner. She remembered getting angry at Naru, then stomping over to the couch to lie down, then… Her dream came back to her. She rushed off the couch and to the nearest trash can before emptying the contents of her stomach. She could feel Ayako's hand on her back and the others rushed forward.

"Mai, what's wrong?" she could hear Naru's voice behind her as she let her body rest limply over the can.

"I'm not sure… but I think I had one of those dreams." All eyes turned towards her.


	3. Chapter 3

I'm grateful for the reviews!

I don't own ghost hunt or its characters.

SPR Case File Status: Open

**Chapter 3**: Dreams

February, Thursday

"Mai, what's wrong?" she could hear Naru's voice behind her.

"I'm not sure… but I think I had one of those dreams." All eyes turned towards her.

Mai managed to rearrange herself, so she was leaning against the wall facing her friends but also near the trash can for when she needed it again. "I'm sure it was one of those dreams." She repeated she felt positive the dream was a psychic dream. The pain and the feeling that she needed to save something were too real. She had only experienced that kind of feeling during her psychic dreams.

"What happened in the dream?" Ayako was still rubbing circles on her back. Mai had sounded distressed and Ayako didn't want the girl to go through something like what happened with the Urado's case again.

"I was in pain…" Mai started but was having a hard time describing the fear and anger she had felt, "I was scared of dying but not for myself but for a different reason…" Mai couldn't quite place the feeling of protectiveness she had felt in the dream when she was nearing death.

"Do you know what the reason was?" Monk was confused, _why would someone be scared of dying if it wasn't for their own life?_

"I had something I needed to protect and if I died so would it?" the statement came out more of as a question but that's how Mai felt. She was confused because the thoughts in her dream didn't seem clear to her.

"How did you die in the dream?" Monk looked at Naru in shock; _even he should know that's not a good thing to ask Mai. How can he be so insensitive?_

"I think I bled to death but I can't be sure since the pain came from inside." Mai was sitting there trying to remember exactly how she died. Meanwhile everyone aside from Naru and Lin were looking at her surprised. They weren't expecting her to be so calm because just minutes ago she was throwing up from the dream.

Naru cursed himself in his head, he had saw Takigawa's pointed look and that's when he realized. _How could I not have realized? Mai had broken down sobbing during the Urado case from doing what he just asked her to do. _He looked to his assistant expecting tears and had to quickly mask his surprise when he saw her contemplating face. She looked like someone contemplating their favorite color not how they just died in a dream.

"So it was internal bleeding?" John seemed to be the first to recover from shock and was now thinking about what Mai had said.

"That depends on where the bleeding is. If the bleeding is in the lungs the person would drown in their own blood. Also, the bleeding may cause the person to go into cardiac arrest. Also, internal bleeding is caused by blunt force trauma or stab wounds… Mai said she didn't have any severe external wounds though." Ayako had gone into doctor mode and was no longer aware of her surroundings. She knew there was a way for someone to bleed internally without being severely injured externally but she just could not remember what it was now._ Of course I can't remember the important medical stuff when it's most needed._

"Where were you feeling pain?" Monk redirected their attention back to Mai who was still trying to remember the finer details of her dream.

Mai motioned to her belly without really coming out of her trance. The pain had felt familiar in a strange way but she couldn't quite place it. _I guess that's all I'll remember for now and perhaps it will become clearer the more they find out about the case._ Mai felt like there was something she was forgetting that happened before the dream.

Her eyes drifted to Naru who was sitting at his chair looking at some files that she guessed were related to the case. She heard her own voice saying, "_Who are they, Naru?"_ Mai felt angry again as she remembered him baiting her with information. "Who are _they, _Naru?" Mai repeated knowing Naru would understand what she was asking.

"_They_ are the Itohs, a couple that moved into this house shortly after the Ishikawas." Naru paused to check and see if everyone was still listening and then continued. "The man Hotaka Itoh died in this house and is the only recorded death in this house."

"Does he have a reason to haunt this house?" Masako had her eyes glued on Naru in a way that made Mai irritated.

"Hotaka's wife Ayame supposedly left the house after a particularly violent fight." Naru said without retuning the looks from Masako. "It is rumored that Ayame was pregnant but those seem to be just rumors. Ayame never went to the hospital for any checkups and there is no record of the child being born."

"So from the despair of losing his family Hotaka remained in the house and died, then continued to wait for his family even after death?" John asked.

"What about Mai's dream? Hotaka died from falling down stairs… so who bled to death?" Masako was waiting for Naru to look up at her but her gaze was left unnoticed much to Mai's satisfaction.

"The only recorded death was Hotaka's. We haven't included any that might be unaccounted for." He shut the folder in his hands and straightened up, "and we haven't determined if this truly is a haunting."

"But my dream-"

"Could be just a dream" Naru countered. "We need to take temperatures of all the rooms. Miss Hara and Miss Matsuzaki, check the house for spirits." Naru turned to Monk and John next, "Takigawa, take Mai and John to take temperatures." With that said he returned to his files.

Masako and Ayako resumed their bickering as the stepped out of the base. The others could hear the last few remarks from Ayako, "you're just jealous because a certain someone won't even give you the time of day." This was followed by a very loud humph which obviously came from the moody medium.

* * *

It took an hour to gather the data for the entire house during which Monk took it upon himself to tease Mai about Naru. John did nothing to stop his teasing and just smiled at the two acting so much like siblings.

"_Aw Mai_, you are so cute when you're in _l-o-v-e._" Mai made another swatting motion at Monk which only made him laugh harder. Mai knew Monk and Yasuhara were hanging out more because Yasuhara was making Monk more obnoxious.

"What about you Monk?" Mai was going to take a shot in the dark and hope she was right. "Anything progress between you and our favorite priestess." She looked up expecting him to deny it but saw instead that Monk was covering a blush. Even John was looking over slightly stunned.

"I-I don't know what you're talking about!" Monk was trying to hide his face by looking away but John and Mai were like cats following a laser point.

"Oh my, you are totally hiding something from us!" Mai had to cover her mouth to fight the fit of giggles escaping her.

"It's not what you think. It completely one sided." Monks shoulders dropped as his embarrassment went away and was replaced with a heavy sigh.

"I'm not so sure about that." John said putting a finger to his chin as he thought back to all of his and Ayako's fights.

"Yeah Monk, I'm sure you've got a chance… at least better than me." Now it was Mia's turn to let out a heavy sigh. John just looked over at the two and shook his head; _these two could easily be related because they are both just as oblivious to love as the other._

* * *

They all returned to base, Mai felt exhausted from the busy day. They were all waiting for the return of Masako and Ayako. Naru decided that the downstairs storeroom and the stair way were the coolest so, that were the first two cameras would be set up. Naru looked up to Mai and Takigawa who were now lounging on the couch struggling to keep their eyes open.

"Mai gath-"

"AAAAAAAh!" The scream jolted the two awake and had them scrambling for the door with John, Lin, and Naru close behind.

"Masako!" Mai yelled as they grew closer to where the scream originated. They rushed down the stairs and threw the door to the storeroom open. Mai's hand immediately covered her face as she breathed in the copper sent of blood.

Masako stood next to Ayako in a puddle of blood; both women were as white as sheets. Ayako saw Monk and reached out towards him like a child reaching for a parent, the relief clear on her face. Masako would have made the same motions for Naru but couldn't see him, so she settled for john. Monk gripped Ayako's forearms and helped her out of the blood that was ankle deep; she fell into him sobbing once she was safe.

"What happened?" Naru's voice caught Masako's attention and she collapsed into him immediately. _Really, she wasn't this bad a second ago but now that Naru's here she's got to be all dramatic._ Mai knew that it was scary but she still wasn't going to be happy about the display before her.

"There are two spirits here," Masako said into Naru's chest, "One is the man Hotaka and the other is a woman spirit." Naru tried to pry Masako off but felt her get heavier when she fainted.

"Mai, help john carry Miss Hara to your room then return to the base." He motioned for monk to help Miss Matsuzaki and follow him and Lin.


	4. Chapter 4

Thanks for your reviews! I'm going to try to make the chapters longer but I can't promise anything.

I don't own ghost hunt or any of its characters.

SPR Case File Status: Open

**Chapter 4: **Rumors

Back at the base everyone was quiet, Ayako was still holding onto Monk desperately mostly due to the fact she wasn't sure she could stand on her own. Naru was waiting for the priestess to calm down, even though Masako told him about the spirits, he wanted to know what had happened to them.

"You'd think she could pick a more convenient time to faint then when she's covered in blood." Mai's complaints could be heard through the door before she entered with John. Mai and john had changed their clothes and were wiping their wet hands on a towel. They brought the towel over to Monk and helped him wipe the blood from Ayako's face and hands.

"Miss Matsuzaki, can you tell us what happened in the storeroom?" Naru motioned to Lin who typed a few more things on his laptop before turning his attention to Ayako.

"We walked in to do the routine check and Masako said she could sense something but she wasn't sure." Ayako sucked in a deep breath before continuing. "I did a few chants to see if I could bring the spirit out. That's when Masako said she sensed two spirits; we were discussing it when the smell caught our attention. At first we couldn't tell where it was coming from but when some of the blood hit our faces we looked down." She cringed remembering the disgusting feeling around her ankles.

"What do you mean hit your faces? It was on the ground, so how did it hit your face?" Mai watched Ayako shudder again.

"It was coming out of the floor through a crack and it was coming out like a fountain. We wanted to move but something grabbed our ankle, that's when Masako screamed. The blood just kept flowing and once you guys got there it was already at our ankles." She leaned into Monk unconsciously and failed to keep her eyelids open.

"Takigawa, take Miss Matsuzaki to the girls room so she can rest properly there." Naru turned to the monitors. _If there are two spirits here it would makes sense for the second's spirits death to be in the storeroom. I believe that also accounts for Mai's dream, however, that much blood would not be caused by internal bleeding. We are missing something important._ Naru was getting tired himself and decided once Monk returned they would call it a night.

Mai felt bad for Ayako and Masako but at the same time was glad it wasn't her this time. She was so used to being the first attacked when a case came up and frankly she was getting sick of it. All of the action today was making her really tired and she wasn't sure she could stay awake much longer in fact her eyes were closing right then.

The thump behind them made Lin and Naru turn in time to see the young assistant fall forward onto the couch from her sitting position. Naru let out a heavy sigh, "Now we have one more person to carry to bed." Lin smirked realizing that instead of waking her up like he would anyone else, Naru had decided to carry her. "Lin carry Mai to her room and tell Takigawa to turn in for the night if you see him on the way. I'll follow you shortly." Lin let his own sigh out, _scratch that last thought, he had decided I would carry her._ Lin picked her up with ease and was thankful he got to take Mai back because in his opinion she was the lightest of the three girls. That was probably mostly because she didn't wear a heavy kimono or was very tall.

* * *

**Mai sat up in the darkness, she remembered waiting for Naru to let her go to bed but she didn't remember him saying she could. She had a feeling she would get a long lecture when she woke up. **_**Hmmm… this looks like one of those dreams which means…**_** Mai turned around and sure enough there he was. Dream Naru smiled when he saw her face and put out his hand to take hers.**

"**So, what are you going to show me today?" She was going to have to pay attention because these dream usually mattered and real Naru would want a full report.**

"**I don't show you, I just guide you through your own dreams." His smile widened when he saw her make a face that clearly said **_**what's the difference? **_

"**Right" he tugged her towards a light like the one you see at the end of a tunnel and this one opened into the street in front of the Enomoto's residence. The sun was bright and children were playing in the street, it was the perfect setting for a happy family but the noises coming from the house were far from sweet.**

"**I HATE YOU! You never think about anyone but yourself and that will never change!" The woman's voice was coming from the house. Mai walked toward the yelling knowing that it most likely belonged to one of the spirits who haunted the house.**

**The couple was standing in the hallway facing each other in a way that resembled a western shoot out. The man had his fist balled and was edging forward preparing to strike the woman in front of him. The woman wasn't backing down and seemed to be moving forward as well.**

"**You're no better than a cheap whore." The man's voice was dark, "You'd sleep with anyone who offered." He raised his fist and brought it down on the woman's face.**

"**You're one to talk, don't think I don't know what you really do on your important business meetings" The woman was holding her cheek in her hand and was refusing to back down under the man's glare.**

**Dream Naru took Mai's hand and led her out of the house and away from the fight that was growing louder. He turned around once they had reached the curb.**

"**Are they the two spirits haunting this house Naru?" Mai looked up at Naru who nodded. "Who are they and why aren't they moving on?" Naru looked down at her and was about to answer when he was interrupted by two women behind them.**

"**Look the Itohs are at it again. Geez, I wonder why they even stay married when they can't even be in the same room together." The women who were talking looked like the typical housewives and Mai assumed what they were doing was gossiping. **

"**I heard the wife was caught with another man in their house." The shorter of the two said, "It's also rumored she was seen with several different men outside the house, though that may be just a rumor."**

"**There's a bit of truth to every rumor." The woman looked at the Itoh's house in obvious disdain, "How disgraceful." The scene before Mai seemed to fade out.**

* * *

Mai sat up in her bed and looked to either side of her, the other girls were fast asleep meaning it must be sometime in the middle of the night. She threw her legs over the side of the bed and found her pink fuzzy slippers. She was wide awake now so, she might as well go get a little midnight snack.

She crept down the hallway in the direction of the stairs being careful not to make noise in case her boss was up. She wanted to avoid the lecture she knew was going to be dealt if he caught her sneaking around. On cases like this one where the activity escalates sooner than it should Naru usually doesn't allow her to go places alone but no one was awake and that snack sounded very appealing.

She started down the stair when she noticed someone was standing at the bottom. On closer inspection she could make out that whoever it was they weren't familiar to her. She didn't want to call out because more than likely this man was not supposed to be here. He could possibly be a thief or on the optimistic side of things he could be Mister Enomoto's friend.

She leaned forward slightly on the stairs. Squeak! Mai's stomach dropped what seemed like fifty feet and she cursed the stairs for being squeaky. The man in front of her didn't move and Mai felt a small bit of relief fill her mind, _he didn't hear me._ That bit of relief cleared her mind enough for her to notice something else… it was cold. The house was usually cold but this was more like freezing. Her stomach once again was falling b and this time she felt it do a few flips on its way down.

Her knees stopped working and she sat down hard on the steps, her hands went into the seal of the immovable one but no words escaped her lips. The man turned slowly his sunken eyes moved erratically in his eye sockets and his lips moved wordlessly. The wound on his head oozed profusely, adding red lines down his cheeks like tears.

He started to move towards her dragging his leg, which was twisted in an odd angle. His hands went out and gripped Mai's shoulders. She hadn't moved from her previous position and was to terrified to do so now. "Go away!" It shook her shoulders roughly as it repeated those words.

"Namaku san man dan, Bazara dan Kan! Namaku san man dan, Bazara dan Kan!" Mai lips started to work and the chant flooded from her mouth. The ghost in front of her disappeared in a burst of cold mist. Mai fell back on the stairs breathing heavily, she felt like she had just run a marathon. She laughed breathlessly when she realized why she could speak before. _I was holding my breath and trying to speak without any air. Thank god Naru didn't see that or I'd never hear the end of it._

Mai looked down the hallway, she had wanted to go back up right away but she also really wanted that snack and she was already down the stairs so… She pushed herself up and continued on into the kitchen. Once there she found a glass and poured herself some milk, then she rummaged through a bag she had stowed in the corner and found the cookies she had brought for just a time like this.

With a now satisfied appetite Mai returned to her bed and what she hoped to be a very relaxing dreamless sleep.

* * *

"Mai get up." The cold voice was close to her ear and no matter which way Mai shifted her body it seemed to follow. "Mai get up now, you have a lot of explaining to do." The well masked anger in the voice was what finally got Mai to open her eyes to an assortment of angry looks.

Monk and Naru appeared the angriest and the most threatening, Ayako and Masako a close second, John's worried face and Lin's expressionless one were near the only exit. Mai was trying to remember what she could have done to make them so angry. She slept on the job but that would only make Naru irritated. That's when she remembered sneaking out but even that wouldn't make them this made unless… oh right, they had set up the camera at the bottom of the stairs yesterday. They must have seen the screen go black in between the time she had left her room and returned.

"Mai what were you thinking! What if the ghost was stronger than the immovable one? What would you have done then?!" Monks voice was hash and made Mai flinch. _Wait… They saw what happened?_

"How did you know what happened?" She avoided the question Monk had asked by asking one of her own.

"It was caught on camera, stupid." Naru's voice was much colder than usual and Mai was too scared to meet his gaze just yet. "The ghost must have not cared to mess with it because you distracted it."

"Right, well you see… I woke up in the middle of the night and wanted a snack." This only made the looks around her harden. "I had one of those dreams and was feeling shaken so I wanted some comfort food." She quickly added even though the dream hadn't shaken her at all, Mai hoped this would calm a bit of the rage directed at her. "I got to the bottom of the stairs and didn't realize he was a ghost until it was too late. After he left I figured there was no reason to wake you up at that point and decided to get my snack and talk to you in the morning."

"You should have woken us up immediately." Naru's voice was unforgiving.

"I'm sorry, I won't do it again." Mai felt this was unfair, had it been Ayako or Monk he wouldn't be like this at all, she was treating her like a little kid.

"If you're going to keep being mean I won't tell you what I saw in my dream." Mai pushed out her bottom lip into a small pout.

The others sighed, Mai didn't understand how the attention spirits gave her was unnatural and dangerous because she was the most defenseless in the group. Monk was trying hard not to yell at the girl but he couldn't help but be angry. She had gone off on her own, gotten attacked, and then didn't tell any of them that it had happened.

Naru had woken up early to look at the footage taken last night; he wasn't expecting to see Mai wandering around. When the ghost showed up on the screen he felt his worry intensify. He watched her freeze up and it wasn't until she was in the ghost's grasp did she fight back. He was expecting to see her go back up but instead she continued on her way as if nothing had happened. It wasn't until he had watched her return to her room that he stood up infuriated. _She could have been hurt badly or worse and she didn't tell anyone._

He sat here just staring at her_; she was seriously going to act like they were in the wrong!_ He took a few deep breaths to calm himself and returned to staring at her pouting face. _From this point on she will not be allowed to go anywhere alone, I will make sure of that. _

"What did you see in your dream?" Naru's voice was calmer now and Mai felt it was safe to assume he wasn't very angry anymore.

"I was in this house at the time that the Itohs owned it and they were fighting." Mai thought back to what the fight had been about. "Apparently they were arguing over the fact that the wife was caught with another man. The woman implied that her husband was no better than she was."

"So they were both having an affair and yet they stayed married." John had come closer to the bed and seemed to be the only one able to speak up without letting their frustration with Mai out.

"The husband struck his wife during the argument and it appeared he did this often because she didn't falter at all." Mai disliked men who beat their families more than anything and her disgust was evident in her voice.

"Is there anything else?" Naru seemed to be under control of his emotions for now and was ready to continue working on the case.

"Yes, I overheard two housewives gossiping, it seems the wife was rumored to have multiple lovers and the woman both seemed to dislike the Itohs greatly."

"That would make sense; the Itohs were rumored to be not liked by their neighbors because of their constant fighting." Naru's hand went up to his chin as he started to piece things together. "It's safe to assume the spirits haunting this house belong to Ayame and Hotaka Itoh. The only thing missing is now is how Ayame Itoh died. She is most likely the one who bled to death in the storeroom downstairs but how did she bleed to death."

"Monk and john get ready we are going to try and exorcise the stairs and the storeroom tonight." Naru got up and left the room giving Lin some directions on where cameras were to be set up during the exorcism.


	5. Chapter 5

Thanks for all the reviews, they are really helpful and make me super happy!

I will try to make my chapters longer for you guys.

I do not own ghost hunt or its characters.

SPR Case Files status: Open

**Chapter 5:** Sick

Mai was sick and tired of being stuck in the base room with Naru and Lin _all _day. After her little trip to the kitchen in the middle of the night, Naru wasn't giving her any opportunities to escape. He even was turned towards her while he read his file and would send her warning glances every once in a while when he saw her begin to fidget in her chair. He wouldn't talk and he wouldn't show her any of the files he was reading, it was maddening.

"Uh… Hey Naru, would you like some tea?" Mai was going to do anything to just be out of that room for even a few seconds. The others had all been told to do a check of the house and prepare for tonight's exorcism. Naru had to be craving tea because he hadn't had one cup since yesterday evening. His tea addiction was unbelievable, at one point Mai thought she was hired just so she could make tea.

"I'm fine. I would have asked for tea if I wanted it." Mai could almost feel the irritation coming from him. She realized he must be suffering withdrawal symptoms, she had heard of them before from a friend whose mom was trying to quit smoking. _Tea withdrawal,_ Mai couldn't help but giggle at the thought. That's when the best idea she'd had that day came to her.

Mai turned so she could see Naru from the corner of her eye and then let out a drawn out sigh. "Hey Lin," she waited until she had the Chinese man's full attention, "wouldn't a hot cup of coffee sound great right now." Lin just raised his eyebrow at her and continued typing. "Oh or better yet how about a hot cup of tea?" Lin again looked up at but this time she thought he might have caught on. "Ne Lin?"

"Tea would be nice however we have no one to make it." Lin gave her a pointed look; _I am not going to be a part of this. I don't want to deal with Naru being angry at me._

Mai sighed again and watched her friends on the monitors for a few minutes before opening her mouth, "But what if we could have tea? What kind would you want Lin?" Mai tried to form the most innocent expression on her face as she stared at Lin expectantly.

_Mai is seriously trying to get me in trouble_, Lin tried to focus on his work but he could feel her expectant eyes boring into him. "I suppose any kind of tea would be fine." He glanced over to Naru relieved to see the boy hadn't changed in the slightest. Lin knew Naru was abstaining from tea because he wanted to keep Mai out of trouble and he wanted to punish her a bit for last night's fiasco.

"Humph," Mai knew it was immature but so what, she wanted to be a part of the case and these two grumps weren't going to budge. "I thought some earl grey would be perfect right now." She knew that was a low blow because out of all the teas Naru loved earl grey.

Naru's hands tightened on the file he was reading, _why can't she leave that tea thing alone? I thought she hated having to get it for me every case. _Naru knew exactly why she was doing this and was trying his best not to think about his young assistant's superb tea. His mouth felt dry and uncomfortable and his hand kept leaving his file reaching for a nonexistent cup.

Mai grinned she was so close to getting her way, all she needed was a few more pushes in the right direction. She stood up and knocked some papers to the floor along with Naru's favorite cup. She had grabbed the cup and slowed its fall but she made sure it was on the floor with the other papers. She picked up the cup and placed it above her on the table near Naru, then stacked the papers neatly on the desk she previously occupied.

Naru's hand reached out instinctively again but this time made contact with a cup. He moved it to his mouth unconsciously and felt air pass through his lips where tea should have been. "Mai," he growled, "stop fooling around and sit still." He had felt his need for tea intensify with that last bit of false hope and knew it was the fault of the small brunette. He turned to the monitors to check on the other before returning to his file.

Naru just could not figure out how the woman spirit, Ayame, had died. Naru hated nothing more than incomplete case information. He was tempted to hold a séance just to find out that small detail but he didn't want to waste time and energy on something that wasn't pertinent to end the case.

Though cleansing was the preferred method, he couldn't find what was keeping the two here. That was his plan for the day, his goal was to find the reason the ghosts were still here and hopefully be able to cleanse them tonight but there did not seem to be an explanation.

They suspected the man Hotaka had stayed because he was waiting for his family however it appears his only family, Ayame, died here as well. Naru realized the only way to get the answers he needed was to hold off the exorcism for one more night.

He knew the others, Lin especially, were shocked when he wanted to do an exorcism without knowing the full story but it was mostly because he was mad at his assistant's reckless behavior. "Lin I want you to call the others. We need to tell Miss Hara to prepare for a séance tonight."

"I thought we were doing an exorcism?" Mai knew Naru usually did not change his mind once a decision has been made so, this was a rare occurrence.

"I want to attempt to find out how Ayame died." Naru was still focused on the file before him.

"I told you already she bled to death right?" Mai was confused.

"Mai, why did she bleed to death?" Naru sighed and acted like he was explaining something to a child.

"I don't know…" Mai realized where her information was lacking and felt a blush coming on fast.

"That's what I thought and that's why we need to know the finer details before we make any moves to remove them." Naru hadn't looked up once throughout the entire conversation.

"Then why did you… Ah, I see that's what you've been trying to find all day and right now too!" Mai felt proud of herself when he nodded implying she was right.

"We are still going to attempt an exorcism but I was hoping to try a cleansing first." Naru put his file to the side and saw his team approaching the base.

* * *

The others walked into base dragging their feet, it was obvious to Mai they were tired from running around all day. Mai wished she could feel the same way but unfortunately she was trapped in the base instead.

"How's the base been holding up while we were gone?" Ayako whispered into Mai's ear, obviously implying something else. Mai decided it was better to ignore that question instead of encouraging the priestess any further.

"Hey, Masako are you ready for the séance!" Ayako huffed when she realized my avoided the question. Masako looked at Mai as if she had grown a third head, _was she seriously expecting me to speak to her after she got to spend the entire day with Naru._ Masako shot Mai a filthy look before turning her attention to Naru.

"The séance will be held in the room next to this one." Naru stood and walked to the door before he stopped to turn and look at the rest of the SPR team, "Stop staring like idiots and get to work." The chaos that ensued after he left was stopped by John and Lin as Ayako and of course Mai tried to catch up to Naru and strangle him.

* * *

The room was dark except for a few candles that lit up Masako's pretty face in an eerie way. She sat there quietly waiting for Naru's queue for her to begin. When he gave her a curt nod she took a deep breath.

Masako put her hands together and bowed her head focusing everything on the spirits she sensed in the house. The man's spirit was the first she sensed but she quickly avoided contact and reached out for the woman's more subtle presence.

Masako's head lifted but this time she didn't feel like Masako, Mai knew this must be the woman spirit of the house. When she opened her eyes they were empty and looked at the others without really seeing them.

"Ayame Itoh?" Naru asked his eyes never leaving Masako as he walked closer. She shifted her gaze to him and nodded in response to his question. "Can you tell us how you died?" His question made both Ayame and Mai flinch, _really he could have done that a little less abrupt_ Mai thought to herself.

"I had a-" suddenly her hand flew to her mouth and she dashed to the nearest corner where she proceeded to wretch. At the same moment both Mai and Ayako were overtaken by the same impulse and both rushed to their own corner to empty the contents of their stomach. The men in the room just stood there dumfounded at the sight of their female companions being suddenly violently ill.

Ayame wiped her mouth and turned to face the room again but due to the sudden movement her connection weakened and she left the mediums body. Masako slumped forward and was caught by John as she descended to the ground. "What just happened?" John asked the same question everyone was thinking.

Naru's eyes pierced into Mai's back and she realized he was expecting her to answer John's question. A simple I don't know probably wouldn't satisfy so she thought for a moment about the feeling she had and then turned to him. "I felt weird like suddenly I needed to, uh, be sick and then I felt emotions running similar to my dream rush through me." She knew her response wasn't very helpful.

"That was gross!" Ayako had finished and was wiping at her mouth in disgust. "I didn't feel like me and then suddenly I'm over here vomiting." Ayako looked at the mess in obvious distaste.

"Didn't feel like "you"?" Naru was confused and so was the other guys but Mai suddenly felt like she understood the feeling she had experienced, _that's right I wasn't "me"._

Masako stirred in John grip and was begging to come to and boy did she blush when she realized she had her face in John's chest and was gripping him around the waist like a teddy bear. "I-I'm so sorry John, I didn't mean to, uh, fall into you." John smiled pleasantly and nodded showing he wasn't upset in the least.

"Miss Hara, can you explain what just happened?" Naru was bothered by what Mai and Ayako had said and was hoping that Masako could give him more information on the matter.

"She took possession but something about her was weird and she slipped away for a moment when I felt sick…" She looked at her corner and grimaced, "at that moment I think she tried to possess Mai and Ayako but couldn't get a good hold on either so she left."

"She was strange, how?" Naru was trying to piece everything together but he felt like some big piece of the puzzle was missing.

"She had a soul and a half. It was like she had this extra part attached to her because I wasn't expecting it she wasn't able to synch properly." Masako had never felt a spirit like that and was completely clueless to what that extra part might have been.

"Why did she only try to possess the women?" Monk was helping Mai up and leading her away from the mess she had left behind. They would have to clean that up and talk to the Enomoto's if it stained, _I hope I don't get stuck cleaning up;_ Monk was looking around the room at the mess.

"I'm not sure, it seemed like she was hoping for something that only we could offer." Masako's eyebrows were scrunched up in frustration as she tried to place the feeling she and felt only moments before.

"I was going to end this case tonight however I think we should hold of and try contacting her again tomorrow." Naru's interest was piqued, though he didn't want to seem like he wasn't sure what he was doing by changing his mind but he really wanted to know what Masako meant by a soul and a half. It was to interesting to pass up, he was eager to return to his files and start looking for answers to all his questions.

"I thought we were going to do an exorcism tonight?" Ayako was surprised that Naru had changed his mind so suddenly.

Lin decided to come to his rescue knowing fully what the boy's true reasons were. "This new information may be enough to figure out why she died and may lead to a cleansing instead. That is the preferred method, right?" Naru sent a grateful glance his way and Lin gave him a small smile. Naru would always be a scientist at heart and any chance to get new data was irresistible.

"So Masako, was it the extra piece that made us so sick?" Mai still couldn't shake the weird feeling that the sickness they had experienced had greater meaning.

"Didn't Miss Enomoto say she had been sick before? We should ask her if she had a similar experience." Ayako had recovered from her disgust and was now experiencing a similar feeling as Mai.

Masako nodded agreeing with the other two, "It's not that late, we should go see if she's still awake." They started towards the door when they heard a shrill scream.


	6. Chapter 6

Thanks for the reviews, I appreciate the input.

I do not own ghost hunt or its characters.

SPR Case Files Status: Open

**Chapter 6:** unborn child

The shrill scream set the group into motion, Mai and Monk being the first to rush out towards the noise. Mai's heart was pounding hard in her chest and worst case scenarios played out in her mind. They rushed down the stairs trying not to trip over each other in their haste.

Monk stopped abruptly at the bottom of the stairs where Naomi Enomoto was on the ground clutching her arm where a large bruise could be seen. She scooting back as fast as she could from something they couldn't see.

"Miss Enomoto, what's wrong?" Mai pushed past Monk and started towards the woman on the floor but froze when she felt something cold pass through her.

"Go away… go away… go away." The whisper sent chills down her spine and she turned too fast and fell backwards next to Miss Enomoto. Mai's eyes were frantically trying to find the ghost that had just scared her.

"Mai, what wrong?" Monk stepped down into the hallway allowing the rest of the group to get around him. Masako was staring at Mai confused because she couldn't see what had the girl so frantic. Monk went to take a step forward but Mai threw her hands up motioning for him to stop.

Mai kept searching the air in front of her, she didn't want anyone else to come near the area she had felt the ghost… she felt like something bad would happen if they did. Suddenly Miss Enomoto started shrieking next to her. Mai looked at Masako who still looked confused but just as she started to turn away Masako's eye's widened in terror.

"Mai look out!" Mai felt her heart miss a beat as she felt herself sliding down the hallway. She had felt like she was slapped hard across her face. Miss Enomoto managed to stand and ran frantically into the first room she could reach… the storeroom.

"No!" Mai tried to pull herself up but something was sitting on her legs. She kicked and struggled trying to free herself from whatever was restraining her. "Let go!" Without warning something struck her face, the world went in and out of focus but before she could recover she was being hit again and again.

"Namaku san man, Bazara dan Kan," Mai caught the last bit of Monk's chant as the pressure on top of her vanished. "Mai!" Monk ran over grabbing her shoulders to lift help lift her up.

Mai didn't give him time to speak after he helped her up and rushed for the storeroom door that was locked… but the door didn't have a lock. "Miss Enomoto! Miss Enomoto!" Mai was banging on the door and jiggling the doorknob.

"Mai move." Lin's voice caught Mai's attention and she moved obediently. Lin gave the door a swift kick and the door swung open. Miss Enomoto was on the floor of the room curled up on her side.

"Move aside quickly!" Ayako rushed in and checked her vitals, giving out a sigh of relief before continuing her examination. Only once she had confirmed that Miss Enomoto was only unconscious did she allow the rest of the group to enter the room.

"Is there something wrong with her?" Mai kneeled down next to Ayako, she was feeling dizzy and a little nauseous but more importantly she felt a presence.

"I'm more worried about you right now, you might have slight head trauma and it looks like you'll have a very colorful face come tomorrow." Ayako had started to prod at the sore parts of my face with her fingers. "It appears nothings broken just badly bruised."

Mai wasn't paying attention to Ayako anymore and was looking at Masako instead. If she felt a presence she was sure the stronger medium could feel it to. Masako's face confirmed that, she was looking at Mai with the same look of questioning; once Mai had made eye contact Masako nodded her agreement. It was not the same ghost from the hallway, meaning it was probably Ayame.

"The woman's spirit is here." Masako tried to locate precisely where she was but again was confuse by that extra part of the spirit. She looked back at Mai reluctantly, not wanting to have to work with her on this; she saw Mai's eyes close before she pitched forward.

"Mai," Ayako caught the girl before she hit the ground. "Snap out of it you can't pass out until I've checked your injuries." Her slaps didn't seem to affect the girl which made Ayako worry, _she could have a concussion in which case sleeping could be extremely dangerous. _She checked her pulse and breathing finding both normal made her relax slightly. She needed to move Mai to the base so she could get her bag and actually apply some first aid. "We need to move her to the base." Ayako helped lift her into Monks arms so he could carry her back.

"Is Mai and Miss Enomoto's condition because of the spirit?" Naru's question was much calmer then he felt. He didn't like watching his assistant get attacked by a ghost and he also didn't take kindly to seeing her faint randomly.

"No, I didn't feel anything indicating she's moved. It feels like she's been hiding ever since the Man's spirit acted up."

"Can we continue this at the base? I'd personally really like to get Mai out of here." Monk adjusted Mai in his arms so she was more comfortable.

"Yes, let's get Miss Enomoto to the base as well, Lin." Naru looked at Lin who nodded in return and went over to the unconscious woman.

* * *

**Mai was sitting in the storeroom, though it didn't look like the storeroom, there was a couch in the corner, a rug by the door, and a large chandelier above her head.**_** If the storeroom looks different it's probably because I'm dreaming, **_**Mai stood up stiffly, **_**which means he should show up any second. **_**She twirled in place while taking in her surroundings and caught sight of her dream Naru… the Naru of her dreams… the Naru who resided only in her dreams, any way she thought of it came out sounding weird. She pushed the annoying thing called thinking to the side and smiled brightly at her approaching dream guide.**

"**Hey Mai, how are you feeling?" Gene traced the already forming bruises on the girls face. **

"**Oh that, don't worry I can hardly feel it." Mai's face really did hurt a lot but she didn't feel like telling the obviously worried Naru that. Real Naru wouldn't look like that and Mai knew that deep down she liked real Naru just the way he was but seeing the worry on dream Naru's face wasn't bad either.**

**Her thoughts were interrupted by the yelling in the hall that was growing steadily closer. "I have every right to keep it! It belongs to me!" The woman's voice was very angry, its volume fluctuating with her temper.**

"**I will never accept that thing in our house, not ever! I hate them and you know it! I bet you did all this just to spite me, didn't you?!" The door flew open and a very red-faced man entered with an equally red-faced woman in tow.**

"**Fine, I'll leave. I should have known this would never work out between us because all you know how to do is drink and swing your fists!" She spat the last sentence at him before turning away but before she could escape the man grabbed her wrist.**

**Dream Naru pulled me to his chest and buried my face there so I wouldn't see the man hit his wife repeatedly. After a few loud thuds Mai could hear the man storm out shutting the door behind him. Mai turned and saw his wife curled into a small shuddering heap, she reached out to help but was pulled away by Naru who just shook his head.**

**Naru pulled her backwards into a dark space that sometimes appeared when she was with dream Naru. She looked into to the darkness trying to find what this place wanted her to see. A small light could be seen just a few steps away so she walked forward.**

**It was light much like the ones seen during the case with Sakauchi but this one was slightly different, it had a smaller light within it that kept flickering like a candle. "What's wrong with it?" Mai turned to dream Naru only to find him not there anymore. She looked back to see the lights take shape; it was a woman holding her stomach smiling. **

* * *

Mai didn't open her eyelids but was aware that people were talking above her; she realized she must have fainted. If she woke up now she would be bombarded with questions so Mai decided to think over her dream a little bit more.

Obviously the woman was Ayame Itoh and the Hotaka Itoh and they were arguing about something Ayame wanted to keep. The information gathered about Ayame wasn't very helpful; all it told them was she didn't like her husband, slept around, and was thought to have left the house. Most of that info was rumored… it seems there were a lot of rumors about the Itohs. _If I remember correctly one rumor even went so far as to say she was pregnant,_ Mai shifted a bit trying to get more comfortable on her pillow, _"There's a bit of truth to every rumor." That's it! _Mai's eyes sprang open to meet cold indigo ones above her.

She felt her pillow shift below her head,_ wait pillows don't shift_, the situation dawned on her and Mai sat up with a small yelp of embarrassment. "W-why? What's going on here?" She was blushing and trying hard not to experience a nosebleed.

"Mai, it's not at all what you're thinking. Miss Matsusaki asked me to hold you still while she checked your head because you wouldn't stop moving." Naru's cold voice brought Mai back down to earth and she realized that should have been her first thought since this was real Naru.

"So is everything still there?" Mai wanted off that topic and thankfully Ayako was still in the room. She gave Mai the thumbs up and continued to watch the monitors.

"The question you really should be asking is if there was anything there to start with?" Mai glared at her boss who was looking up at her with the same cool mask on.

"That was totally uncalled for!" Mai felt like hitting him hard for some reason, probably because her head was throbbing painfully.

"No it was not." Naru's look turned hard, "You ran into a dangerous hallway got beat up and then went into a similarly dangerous room and passed out. You hardly have any warding magic at all and you can't see spirits clearly. That was one of the stupidest things you've done."

Mai wanted to argue but realized this time he was right, it was pretty stupid to run into both the hallway and the room. She just wasn't able to stop herself when she knew Miss Enomoto was in danger. The only time Mai felt useful was in her sleep and with Naru around that wasn't very often. Being psychic out of dreams would be so much more helpful… dreams… oh the dream!

"Naru I had a dream about the case!" Naru was still made at her but would let it go for now.

"Miss Matsuzaki, call everyone in from their rounds." Ayako nodded and spoke into the small microphone on the desk. "Mai, tea."

* * *

"Mai, what happened in your dream?" Naru was satisfied now that he had tea and hopefully more useful information.

"Ayame and Hotaka had a fight in the storeroom about Ayame being pregnant by another man, I think." Mai wasn't positive about the pregnant part but it made sense with her dream. "Hotaka got mad and beat her up in my dream when she tried to leave."

"So, the rumor that she was pregnant was true?" John felt a pang of sadness as he realized both a woman and child had died.

"I see, Hotaka gets made about the child not being his and beats Ayame to death." Ayako put her hand to her head thinking, "but why would Hotaka stay behind too."

"Maybe he regrets killing them." John was hopeful but knew the chances of that were small.

"No, in my dream Hotaka didn't really care that it wasn't his… he was angrier because he didn't like kids, he wanted her to get rid of it."

"Hotaka keeps trying to push us away. I think it's more likely Ayame's death was an accident and he's been trying to hide it all these years." Monk looked over at Naru who had yet to share his opinion.

"You may be right Takigawa, I think he started to see Ayame's ghost and feared someone would find out about her death so he hid himself in his house. Ayame remained because she regretted the death of her unborn child and killed Hotaka because he killed them. Hotaka remains solely to stop people from finding Ayame's remains." Naru closed his file with a confident snap.

"How did she die though?" Masako asked.  
"I can answer that." Ayako was beginning to catch on. "He caused an accidental miscarriage and she bled to death when he left her in the room. Unnatural Miscarriages commonly cause unbearable pain and severe blood loss if they aren't treated properly."

"Exactly and when Ayame died her spirit still carried her child's spirit which is why her spirit appears to have an extra piece."

"That make sense, in my dream her spirit had something flickering inside it!" It all made sense now.

"So why did we get sick when she tried to possess us?" Ayako asked

"I thought you being the doctor would already know the answer to that." Naru looked at her mockingly.

"Well I don't." She snapped back.

"Morning sickness"


	7. Chapter 7

Thanks for the reviews!

I do not own ghost hunt or its characters

SPR Case Files Status: Open

**Chapter 7: **silly fears

Ayako's face was comical as she processed the information, "Morning Sickness?!" She was embarrassed that she didn't realize that first but more importantly she had a ridiculous fear begin to set in. "Can spirits… you know…" She looked at Masako desperately hoping she had an answer to her question.

"Can they what?" Mai was confused by Ayako's sudden panic.

"I'm not sure I've never dealt with something like this before but most likely no." Masako was soon begging to feel the same ridiculous fear take hold. She could see the aside from Ayako and herself no one else was aware of their worry.

"Should we?"

"Yes," Masako wanted to put the irrational feeling to rest, "Mai let's go." She tugged Mai with her towards the door.

"Where do you think you are taking my assistant during working hours?" Naru couldn't understand his companion's sudden concern and for some reason it irked him that he was left out.

Masako felt a chill run down her spine after hearing Naru's cold voice but she definitely didn't want to explain what was wrong because she knew he would think it stupid. She realized it was stupid too but felt the need to check just to be positive. "Woman problems," Masako never thought she would ever use that excuse in her life but here she was using it on the guy she liked.

"All three of you?" Naru didn't seem perturbed by what she said but was skeptical which made Masako pause frantic to find another excuse; she could tell him anything but the truth.

"We're on the same schedule, it happens." Ayako was as desperate as Masako to avoid the truth and wanted out of there as fast as possible.

Meanwhile, Mai was confused, _what had them so worried? They had started panicking after hearing about Morning Sickness… but why? _Mai knew the sickness indicated pregnancy but they couldn't possibly think something so ridiculous could actually happen. She saw their expressions and realized she was right, this sent her into a fit of giggles._ They even used the "woman problem" excuse on __**Naru**__, oh god that's just priceless. _Mai's giggling increased until she found herself clutching her sides rolling on the floor laughing. Everyone in the room aside from Masako and Ayako were looking at Mai confused.

"Mai be serious, what if just what if?" Masako didn't like being laughed at and especially if said person had a good reason for laughing. She glared down at the still hysterical girl at her feet, a vibrant blush on her cheeks.

_What if? _Mai paused in her laughing fit and thought about it seriously, _that would be very bad._ She stood and nodded at the two women agreeing to their planned course of action. No matter how ridiculous Mai felt it was, it never hurt to check.

The women rushed out before questions could be asked leaving behind four thoroughly confused men.

* * *

Mai felt relief flood her as all the stick reviled a negative signature. She heard felt Ayako and Masako relax beside her. They all looked at each other huddled over the three sticks in the small bathroom and suddenly they realized the comical situation they were in. Mai had seen Ayako laugh and Masako Laugh before but probably because of the relief they just felt their laughter was so much more hysterical.

All three women were hunched over and gasping for air from their laughter. The thought that a spirit could possibly possess them and pass their child into them was just too impossible and yet here they were huddled in the bathroom checking.

"I can't believe we just did that." Mai was looking down at the tests in embarrassment. _If Naru finds out about this we will __**never**__ here the end of it, _Mai wasn't going to let him find out at all costs.

"What happened here will not leave this room." Mai and Masako nodded their agreement and quickly began to clean up all of the evidence.

"Where will we hide the empty containers? If we put them in the trash here and one of the guys stumbled upon it…" A shudder ran across all three girls at Masako's words.

"We'll hide them in your bags." Ayako nodded as if agreeing with her own statement.

"Why mine?!" Masako half screamed, a fresh blush spreading across her cheeks.

"I agree and no it's not because I'm just trying to spite you. Think about it Masako." Mai looked at Masako seriously hoping she would understand the conclusion both of them had come to. "Monk might try to tease Ayako and go through her stuff, what if he finds it?" Masako shuddered.

"But that doesn't mean we can't use your bags." Masako stuck out her lips pouting

"I'm not finished explaining, First of all Monk might decide to tease me though unlikely in that way." When Masako continued to look unconvinced Mai added, "in addition to that, Naru doesn't seem to have problem searching my bags for stuff. I pack the tea, some of the smaller wires, and a few of the extra flashlights, thermometers, and batteries. If I'm not around he won't have any qualms with getting it himself even if that means rudely going through his assistants bags." Masako couldn't argue that, Naru wouldn't care about Mai's privacy.

"But they might do the same to my bags!" Masako was desperate that was obvious and Mai could guess that it was because she didn't want something so embarrassing in her bags.

"No Masako, unlike Mai and I the guys would be too uncomfortable to tease _you _in that way and Naru too polite to do that to you because you are working with him not for him." Before Masako could open her mouth Ayako continued, "And if one of them did it by accident when aiming for us they would realize it's your bags immediately because of your fashion sense and stop searching." Masako was stumped there really was no getting out of this.

The girls returned to the base restless and guilt ridden but mostly relieved much to the guys' confusion.

"What were you guys up to?" It was an innocent question on John's part but it mad the three girls blush profusely.

"N-nothing you should worry yourself over…ha-ha…ha." Ayako was trying to sound relaxed and teasing but it came out sounding desperate, this made not only Monk and john pause to stare but Lin and Naru turned to look as well.

"What going on?" Naru asked the question in a demanding tone making all three jump nervously.

"Naru even you should know it's rude to ask a girl that question especially in a room full of people!" Masako pulled off offended well even under great pressure and Mai felt so happy she wanted to hug the haughty medium.

Naru just stared unsure what to do in this situation, he wanted to know what's going on but there was really know way to refute that statement. "Very well, for now let's return to the case at hand." Naru wasn't going to let this go and Mai saw that.

"Tea?"

"Yes," Naru didn't even look at Mai to reply, he was already reemerged in his work.

* * *

Next Morning

"We are going to find Ayame's body." The statement came out of nowhere and shocked the group into silence.

"How do we know where to look?" Mai cringed under Naru's exasperated look.

"Really Mai (sigh), She died in the house and was never seen after and her husband Hotaka refused to leave after her death, obviously he was hiding the murder." Mai felt sadness when she realized the woman was never properly mourned because her only family was her rotten husband. _How sad, just when she was starting a family of her own it was destroyed by her husband._

"If we find Ayame's body it will most likely trigger Hotaka passing on and allow Ayame to come out from where she's hiding."

"But Naru why would finding the body let Hotaka pass on? Wouldn't that help Ayame move on?" Monk looked up from his breakfast.

"Hotaka is still here because he fears Ayame being found and if we find her there will no longer be a reason for him to remain. Ayame isn't here because of her bodies disappearance but because she wants to save her unborn child." Lin responded allowing Naru to drink his tea that was rapidly cooling. Mai silently thanked him; he knew Naru would ask her to make him a new batch if his tea became lukewarm.

"Well where do we start?" John asked the question they all were thinking. Another exasperated look, now directed at everyone, and heavy sigh met the question.

"It's obvious, we look in the storeroom."

* * *

"You wish to search the floorboards in the storeroom?" Mrs. and Mr. Enomoto were surprised by the sudden request. "What are you looking for?"

"A body" Mai sweat dropped, _so blunt, _Naru wasn't the least bit reserved about the situation.

"A-a b-body, whose?" Mr. Enomoto was flustered to say the least and his wife not much better.

"Ayame Itoh, she was murdered by her husband and hidden within this house." The Enomoto's condition got worse and Mai wished her boss could develop tact miraculously.

"I'm sorry he is being so rude, he just not good at phrasing these things." Mai gave Naru a sideways glare before returning her attention to the very pale couple. "For now why don't you two take a little break in a hotel nearby while we continue our investigation? When we get back everything will be resolved, okay?" Mai knew Naru was going to suggest the same thing however most likely in a less comforting way.

"Yes I think we'll do that. You may do whatever you need in order to find… what you're looking for." With that said Mr. Enomoto helped his wife out of the house and into their car.

"We will need to keep Hotaka from interrupting the search so I want Ayako to make wards to set up in the storeroom." Ayako let out a sigh but otherwise didn't complain. Mai knew she wanted out of this house and Mai could sympathize, the girls hadn't said anything to the guys but that morning before breakfast each of them experienced a bit of Morning Sickness. Mai didn't like throwing up usually and now that she knew why she was throwing up it made her even more upset. Now they were positive pregnancy was impossible they were angry at the ghost for making them sick pointlessly.

"When do we begin?" Masako seemed just as eager to begin as Mai and Ayako.

"Right now"

* * *

It took very little time to set up the room to begin even though Lin had to leave to pick up the tools needed to take apart the room. Personally Mai didn't want to look for a corpse and she didn't want to be the one to make the discovery. It didn't help a particular someone wasn't going to help because she had to keep an eye on the spirits and Ayako was reinforcing the wards. _I'm the only girl who Naru is making pry up the heavy floorboards._

"Let's start from the far corners and work in towards the door." Mai and Monk broke off into one team while Lin and Naru took the other corner; John was assigned to check the other boards for any sign of being tampered with.

Mai looked to Monk expectantly then turned to look at the pry bar expectantly, then back at Monk. She put out her hip, leaned her torso forward, and made the best abandoned puppy face she could but Monk was going to be tough. He looked her square in the face with the deadest expression he could muster.

Ayako, Masako, and John were watching the battle of wills with much anticipation. Naru and Lin had stopped what they were doing to watch what was keeping the others from doing their work.

"Monk" Lin muttered

"Mai" Naru quietly replied

The quick exchange of Names only caught the other observer's attention but eluded the attention of the people in question. Ayako and Masako were confused but surprisingly John who usual missed most stuff had caught onto what the two men were doing and returned his eyes to the battle then said, "Mai".

Monk was focusing hard on not budging at the adorable face the young brunette was making; she kept glancing at the pry bar then looking up at him lower lip trembling. Mai was just as stubborn, she knew she was cute; her friends at school couldn't resist this face. She would win somehow even if that meant bringing out the waterworks.

"If I do the prying you have to look under the boards." Monk knew this could be his winning card; he kept his face smooth and continued to watch the adorable display while he waited for her to process what he said.

_I don't want to pull up boards it's too much work but peeking under them means I might see the body and I don't want to see it…_ Mai's act began to falter as she processed that her trembling features turned into a thoughtful pout. The pout wasn't as pitiful but still had the same adorable quality on the girls face. Mai was at an impasse, she would either have to find the body or wear herself out pulling up boards that looked to be oak.

"Fine I'll do it but you're giving me a massage if I get sore." Mai looked up the pout still in place and Monks cold demeanor melted into his usual brotherly love as he scooped her up into a hug.

"Aw, you're so cute Mai." Monk comment irritated Mai just a little bit,_ if I'm so cute then why can't I be someone who gets to sit and watch spirits, she just doesn't want to get her stupid kimono dirty._

Naru glared at the two angrily as his hand reached for his wallet and passed some money to Lin. John sighed and did the same much to Masako's and Ayako's astonishment.

"I thought Mai would win for sure." John sighed and looked back at Mai struggling to get out of Monks hold.

Masako and Ayako were stunned speechless both of then thought at the same time, _perhaps John notices more than we give him credit for._ They suddenly felt self-conscious about some of the things they've done in the presence of their priest friend.

* * *

Naru and Lin were the first to reach the door from their side of the room leaving loose floorboards in their wake. By the time Mai and Monk had reached them it was clear that the body wasn't wear they thought it would be.

"Did he hide it in a different part of the house?" Monk was breathing hard because halfway through Mai made him switch deciding she didn't care if she saw a dead body because her arms were killing her.

"Unlikely, judging from where his ghost resides it suggests here. He'd tell us to "go away" once we left the bottom of the stairs but leave us alone once we reach the kitchen." Naru had his chin in his hand and was glaring down at the floorboards.

Mai sighed to herself and looked up letting her head hang back in exhaustion. She recognized that chandelier from… her dream! Its crystals were dusty unlike the other furnishings in the room that must have been replaced recently. Something about the way it hung bugged her… it was slanted. She examined the base where the ceiling seemed lumpy underneath the paint.

"Hey Monk, lend me your shoulders." Mai walked up next to him her eyes never leaving that spot.

"Sure Mai." Monk bent down and Mai climbed up so she was sitting on his shoulders like a little kid.

"Hey, one of you hand me a pry bar." She reached down and took the bar from Lin with a small thank you. "Monk, walk a little to the side of the chandelier please." Mai was too focused on what she was doing to notice the puzzled looks her friends were exchanging. Something about the chandelier bugged her and she was determined to find out why.

When the pry bar in her hand met the base the room dropped in temperature rapidly. She felt a hand grab her other arm and yank hard. _It's a good thing Monks holding my leg, _Mai though as whatever had her arm began to tug harder.

"Our father who art in heaven, hallow be thy name. In the beginning was the word and the word was with god and the word it was god…" John's prayer lessened the hold on Mai and gave her the opportunity she needed. She struck the base of the chandelier as hard as she could and felt the bar imbed itself in the ceiling.

"Mai and Monk look out!" Ayako's words were lost in the crumble of the ceiling and the chandelier with it. A corner of the chandelier caught Mai's arm and pulled her off Monk and roughly to the ground.

The dust choked everyone in the room and sent them into a fit of coughing around Mai. She couldn't see any think and felt around for Monk to make sure he wasn't hurt. They weren't directly under the stuff when it fell but close enough. Her hand fell on something hard and she used it to pull herself into a sitting position on the floor. That's when the dust started to clear.

Mai could see Masako and Ayako coughing in the corner; John was by the door where he had been chanting before. Lin and Naru were trying to make their way through the rubble and Monk was face down behind her. She looked to her hand and realized what she had used to sit up… it was the shoulder the very body they had been looking for. The skull was turned away from her thankfully but that didn't stop the strangled scream that escaped her lips.

"I found it." Mai's voice sounded small and Monk pulled her back into his chest covering her eyes.

"Yes you did." Naru didn't like his assistant seeing these sorts of things and honestly hoped he or Lin would have found it first. The only reason he made her work was so she didn't get into trouble while they were searching; he would rather have her traumatized than hurt.

* * *

Everyone took an hour break and for that Mai was grateful, she was still a little shaken up. Lin and Naru were discussing the best way to remove Ayame from the house. Unfortunately exorcism was begging to be the best option.

"Naru, why can't you make a hitogata for her like in the doll house case?" Mai was asking what seemed to her to be a good question but the look he gave her said otherwise.

"We can't make a hitogata for a child that hasn't even left the womb."

"Well then how do we get her to move on?" Mai was embarrassed by her last question and prayed silently this one wouldn't be the same.

"We can't, unless you're able to convince her that her child is alive, we have no choice but to exorcise her." Naru left no room for her to argue that statement.

"As much as I don't like this Mai, Naru it right we can't cleanse her." It was rare for Masako to speak in comfort to Mai but in this situation Mai could guess it was because they both disliked exorcising spirits.

"We will perform the exorcism inside the storeroom, I want Monk to go first and then John, perform a precautionary cleansing afterwards." Monk and John nodded and left to dress in their working attire. "Mai and Ayako will stay here and watch the rest of the house for activity. Masako you will accompany John, Monk, Lin, and I to the storeroom and report the spirits movements."

Mai wasn't happy about being left behind and wanted to watch the exorcism in the room with everyone else. She was pacified when Monk reminded her that the body was down stairs as well. Luckily Ayako was forced to stay behind as well which made it bearable but being left out still left a bad taste in Mai's mouth.

* * *

Sorry for the long wait!

I was trying to finish this case in one chapter but it looks like I'll have to make it two.


	8. Chapter 8

Thanks for all the reviews!

Sorry for the super long wait, classes started and it took a while to find time. As a little gift I made this one longer.

I do not own ghost hunt or its characters.

SPR Case File Status: Open

**Chapter 8:** Closure

Mai could hear Monks chants through the microphone on the camera and felt relieved when she saw no creepy apparitions in the near vicinity. Now that Mai had a chance to relax she could feel the sharp pains in her face that didn't seem present before. There was considerable swelling on her left cheek and she could feel the sore spots where bruises must have formed.

Ayako must have noticed Mai's tender observation of her features and decided to lend her a helping hand. She placed a mirror in front of the girl and grabbed the medical equipment that she seemed to always have with her. Mai grimaced at the sight of her much bruised features, for the most part nothing looked bent out of shape but the dark splotches that covered her cheekbones and the arch of her brow looked particularly bad.

"It looks awful." Mai was patting at her face in the mirror as if to make sure it really was her that she was seeing.

"We tried not to say anything because you seemed not to notice." Ayako took out some sort of medical cream and started to rub it gently over the bruised areas.

Mai looked at the monitors to distract herself from the prodding Ayako was subjecting her face to. Monk was in the middle of his chant but something seemed odd. Mai scooted closer to the screens squinting at the monitors trying to find what bothered her so much.

Maybe it was Naru who kept searching the room or perhaps Lin who seemed stiffer than usual or perhaps it was Masako who looked very confused or… it was that figure in the corner. The figure was that of a woman's but the strange thing was Masako hadn't sensed her. She was standing right by the wall and Mai was beginning to wonder why she hadn't noticed right away. Well in her own defense the being seemed kind of hard to focus on like she wasn't really a part of that picture.

Mai froze, _okay Mai, calm yourself, look again, and focus this time. _Mai looked at the screen intently and felt dread settle in her stomach. The lighting from the small window was just right to show the reflection of the room behind her on the screens. Sure enough the figure could be seen on all the monitors in front of her.

Mai tugged on Ayako's sleeve and pointed at the reflection with a trembling hand. Ayako reached for the microphone to inform the rest of the team that they had a ghost in the room but was stopped by Mai. She pointed to the figure on the other screens clamping her other hand down hard on the priestess' shoulder.

"Right," Ayako's voice was breathy and slightly higher in pitch than usual. "The ghost is in here." Mai nodded barely and turned with Ayako to look into the room directly. Mai wanted to scream and run out of the room but unfortunately the ghost had made its way in front of the door blocking their only exit.

"Should we chant?" Mai could feel Ayako stiffen next to her clearly feeling the icy chill that swept over them. The ghost was coming closer and closer but Mai's animal instincts felt no immediate danger; however, Mai's mind disagreed.

"Namaku san man, Bazara dan Kan. Namaku san man, Bazara dan Kan." Chanted in a quiet voice her hands trembled. Then in unison Mai and Ayako began to perform the nine cuts.

The ghost of Ayame stopped; she fell to her knees in agony and looked up at the two screaming something that couldn't be heard. Her mouth opened and closed but still no sound was heard. Mai felt the temperature continue to drop in the base to the point where her breath could almost be seen,

"Mai, we have to get out of here. The nine cuts weren't effective on her." Ayako's eyes never left the ghost as she pulled Mai into her and slowly made her way towards the door. They skirted around the wailing ghost careful not to make contact. Ayako's bag with her equipment was on the other side of the room. She wished she had the bag now because even with limited power it was better than nothing; however, since she didn't have it they would do better escaping as fast as possible.

"Baby" the word echoed in the room suddenly halting their progress towards the door. Ayame was glaring at them with her fists clenched. She stood and reached toward the girls who were unfortunately closer to her now and trapped by the wall behind them.

_What were the guys doing?! _Mai thought angrily and turned to the monitors that were now black. _Shit_, Mai could guess that Masako hadn't sensed the spirits change of location and so the exorcism was continuing down stairs. _Wait, if the exorcism is nearby it should be affecting her. _Mai stared at Ayame and could sense her distress but Ayame seemed able to move through the pain.

"Mai, let's move slowly." Ayame would stop every few steps as if she was struggling to move, _good that means the exorcism is at least slowing her down._ Mai could almost reach the door with her fingers. Mai shivered and was reaching a little further to try to push on the door when Monk must have stopped for some reason because Ayame leaped at them.

Ayame went into Mai stomach and the force threw her back into Ayako and against the wall. Mai felt a sick feeling settle into her stomach and she rushed away from Ayako to hurl. Ayako was scrambling to do the same. Mai watched Ayako warily hoping that Ayame hadn't taken residence in her friend's body.

"Ayako, it's you right?" Ayako looked up and nodded weakly. It wasn't the first time they had felt like this but this time something was different; Ayame was back in the middle of the room staring at the two.

"Do you think she's trying to possess us and save her baby?" Mai gave a short nod and directed her attention back at the dead woman.

"Ayame…" Mai wasn't sure what you were supposed to say to a desperate pregnant woman, especially a dead one. "You can't stay here any longer; your child can't live in this world."

"My child," it appeared to Mai that, that was the only thing she understood. Ayako pulled on Mai edging her towards the door again. _Naru's right we can't cleanse her this way_, Mai hated to admit exorcism was right but Ayame was beyond reason.

"Mai," Ayako's voice was rising in panic, "the door; it's locked." Mai grabbed the knob where Ayako's hands were struggling with it. They both pushed hard on the door without any success. The door to the base had a small lock but nothing too sturdy so it was obvious to Mai the now reinforced door was Ayame's doing.

"We'll have to talk to her until the others realize something is wrong." Mai couldn't help the fluctuations in her voice nor the shaking of her hands. Ayako looked at Mai as if she'd just said something truly offensive.

"_You _can talk to her but I don't have even the slightest intention to exchange pleasantries with a ghost that's trying to impregnate me with her dead baby!" Ayako turned back to the door and started to slam her body as hard as she could against it.

Mai sighed turning back to the empty room…_ empty room?_ The airs frigid temperature hadn't changed however Ayame had vanished from sight. Mai had wondered if things could get worse and then they did, Ayako took another short flight across the room into the wall. Now, Mai and Ayako were separated with Ayame appearing between the two.

"Ayako!" she was trying to sit up but it was obvious her head had hit because of the trail of blood down her cheek and she was dizzy from the collision. Ayame wasn't going to wait for her to recover and reached for Ayako again. "It won't work!" Those words seemed to reach Ayame because she turned to look at Mai.

"Why?" Ayame stared at Mai questioningly and Mai felt pressured to give the right answer but Mai honestly didn't know if what she said was actually true.

"She is right it won't work because if you aren't the one carrying the child then it won't be yours." Ayako must have caught on to Mai's desperate need for help because she jumped in with a reasonable approach. Ayame seemed not to care for the explanation and continued to go for Ayako.

"And," Mai squeaked out the word and diverting Ayame's attention once again. "The spirit of your baby might not form completely in someone else and so it will most definitely die." Mai knew adding might wasn't as convincing but if she sounded sure the ghost would probably ask why _again_ and make them struggle to make ends meet _again. _

Ayame paused this time in contemplation; she looked from Mai to Ayako and back and then said, "There's a chance it will form though." Mai let the dread set in as the true lengths a mother would go to save their child surfaced. Ayame once again turned to Ayako this time her hands touched her face gently. _**She has to stop,**_ the intensity of the thought made Mai sure it was her animal instinct kicking in.

"It definitely won't work with her!" Mai was clutching at straws trying to think of something and Ayako was sending her a desperate plea for help with her eyes. Ayame turned expectantly to Mai waiting for further explanation. Mai could her footsteps on the stairs from behind the door and a spark of hope lit within her. She needed to stall, "She is… she is…" Ayame started to turn away again making Mai scream the first excuse that came to mind, "she is not a she!"

Ayako's eyes bugged out of her head, she was having a hard time concealing her shock from the ghost and nodded furiously even though she was disagreeing fully in her mind. _Of all the things she could have said Mai calls me a transvestite._ Ayame wasn't looking convinced and as much as Ayako hated it she realized that was her only salvation. "Yep its true I'm a… I'm not… I'm not masculine." She couldn't bring herself to say she was a man or not a woman so she settled with talking like she was a feminine man. Also, it was easier to say because it was the truth she wasn't masculine.

Ayame sent a pointed look at Ayako's chest which distracted Mai from the footsteps growing closer. "It's fake," Mai pointes to Ayako's breasts trying to mask the desperation in her voice. "Sh-He had a surgery." Ayako felt like throwing up at having to play along with this charade and hid her face in her hands.

Ayame paused again and looked down at her feet clearly thinking hard. Mai leaned against the door hard and heard voices coming closer. _Wait a minute why didn't they hear Ayako banging and screaming. _Mai fell hard on the door trying to make it look like an accident and a loud bang sounded through the room. Ayame didn't notice and as for the voices outside they continued too as if nothing had happened. _Is it possible she made it impossible for them to hear us too?_ This was something Mai hadn't expected at all.

"You," Ayame turned to Mai as if realizing just now that she was there. Mai felt fear once again take over when Ayame started making her way over to her. The whole transvestite gig wouldn't work a second time and Mai couldn't help but feel like she had screwed herself over with that one. Now, she was being targeted and the chance of words reaching the woman now was zero.

Mai jiggled the door knob again and pressed her full weight on the door but it didn't budge. Ayame was serious and that scared Mai but more than that she was amazed by Ayame's abilities. Ayame had made herself appear for a long time now and it seemed she had even more power considering the soundproof room. Mai wondered if her spiritual control was from psychic powers she had in life or if this had something to do with the piece of her child within her.

"The door won't open." Naru's blunt tone brought Mai back to the situation at hand. She could feel her shoulders sag in relief at the sound of her boss outside. Her relief was short lived when she remembered the door was now ghost reinforced making it harder to break.

"Perhaps their changing clothes?" Monk sounded tired through the door and Mai felt a bit of pity for the overworked Monk.

"Why wouldn't they use the room?" Masako's voice held the same weariness and a bit of frustration. She felt like her signals were being jammed by something which made the whole house seem like one big ghost.

"Hey Mai, open up the door!" Naru raped on the door loudly and the sharp noise made Mai lean away from the door. Mai's back left the door and the cold air hit her back reminding her of the ghost she had stupidly ignored. _Naru does that to me, _Mai sighed knowing it was foolish to feel safe just because he was nearby.

"Mai!" Ayako had seen the girl's attention shift and watched in horror as Ayame neared the girl. Something outside the door made her move away from the door and closer into the room. Mai's eyes shifted and widened when Ayame's form appeared directly in front of her.

The ghostly hand sunk into her body and an arch of excruciating pain jumped through her spine. Mai felt the corners of her vision start to fade and the dissolve into nothingness.

Ayako was frozen in terror when Mai let out a piercing scream followed by her collapsing boneless to the floor. Ayame had managed a forced possession somehow and Ayako feared for Mai more than ever.

* * *

Naru looked in frustration at the base door. It was locked. He remembered telling Mai specifically that the base door was never to be locked unless he ordered it to be done. He knew she could be stupid sometimes but she never forgot something he forbids her to do. _She wouldn't go against him for a stupid reason like changing clothes,_ Naru's heart sped up when he realized her only reason could be something went wrong. He tried banging on the door again but received no answer, "Lin."

Lin nodded and stepped back before slamming onto the door. The hinges shuddered but held surprisingly. Lin's eyes narrowed,_ that blow would have broken down a much thicker door and definitely this thin one._ Lin caught on to why Naru had ordered him in the first place and felt his own dread settle into his stomach. He didn't dwell on it long and threw himself twice more into the door.

The door finally gave way fall and fell out of it frame onto the floor. Gasp came from the doorway making Ayako look up from the still form she was bent over. Mai lay beneath her, unnaturally pale but still breathing.

"What happened?" Monk breathed, he could feel the others stiffen at the sight of their friend motionless on the floor. "What's wrong with Mai?" Monks second question was loud and panicked making Ayako flinch.

"She is possessed… I think." Naru walked over and pressed his fingers to her neck, not happy with Ayako's assessment and not happy at all with the paleness of his assistant.

"How did this happen?" Naru restrained himself from yelling at Ayako for not being able to prevent the situation only because Mai condition was still questionable and she was the only doctor here.

"We were watching the monitors when Mai noticed a reflection on the screen. Ayame wasn't listening to anything we tried to say and she started to attack us. We tried to get out the door but it was locked and it seems you couldn't hear us either." Ayako's palms were sweaty and her hands were now shifting over Mai checking for problems her doctor persona slowly taking over. "Ayame attacked me and would have possessed me too but was stopped by Mai. I think Mai got distracted by your voices outside and Ayame took advantage of that." Satisfied that there was nothing wrong Ayako let her hand fall to her lap.

Naru's attention shifted from the nervous priestess to the Mai who began to shift on the floor. The group waited with bated breath as the young girl started to wake. Her eye's had an empty look, the tell-tale sign of possession. "My baby," Mai's hands cradled her stomach and the softest expression they'd ever seen graced her face.

A small gasp from Masako drew Naru's eyes to her and he was shocked to see a look of pity directed at the possessed Mai. "Miss Hara," Masako's eyes met his and she looked back at Mai nervously as if what she wanted to say would harm the girl.

"Mai is possessed by one spirit." Masako looked at Naru expectantly and kept sending nervous glances toward Mai.

"Miss Hara, stop stating the obvious." The look Masako gave him reminded him very much of the look Mai commonly gave and that irritated him thoroughly.

"Naru, I've had trouble on this case for a specific reason, remember." Naru's eyes lit with realization and Masako felt relieved she didn't have to say it in front of Ayame.

"Ah, I see the baby is gone now." Masako sweat dropped and face palmed simultaneously, _I should have known Naru wouldn't catch on to why I was being discreet. _Mai's head whipped in his direction the malice in her eyes was overflowing in angry tear.

"What did you say?" The icy hatred that came from Mai was new to the entire group. Naru was shocked by the tears for a moment before he remembered it wasn't really his assistant crying but a very angry spirit.

"Your baby is gone." Naru said every word slowly and in the same icy tone Mai was using. His glare could send most people running but the angry mother spirit wasn't going to budge.

"You lie," Mai's face faltered a little and her hand squeezed her stomach slightly tighter.

"Your child has moved on and it would be best for you to follow." Masako's voice could only sound so gentle when dealing with a spirit. She leaned forward her face sympathetic.

"NO!" Mai's arms swung wildly around her as if to keep them at bay however at the same time things were beginning to tremble around the room.

"Stop acting like a CHILD!" the dangerous edge to his voice caught everyone's attention. His coworkers might have thought he forgot it wasn't Mai for a moment but it's Naru and Naru doesn't forget anything. "You were supposed to be a mother and yet you wouldn't let your child pass on. You've been nothing but selfish, like a child." The others flinched now pitying the poor woman for incurring Naru's wrath.

"I want my child to live like any mother would!" Mai's face was pained and broken making it difficult for Naru to continue.

"Yes that's true… but your child could no longer live and now it has moved on without you." He forced the words out ignoring the small pulls at his gut that his assistant's distraught face was causing.

"Please Ayame, you have to let go and join your child in a much better place." Ayako was fighting the urge to punch Naru and hug the possessed girl. Once glance at Monk and surprisingly John told her they were tempted to attack the narcissist.

"Will my child be able to grow in that place?" The hope that lit Mai's face made all of their hearts squeeze a little (even Lin).

"I'm not sure but it definitely won't happen here." Masako sat in front of Ayame and griped the woman's hands. "It will be easy just relax and let go of your attachment to this world."

Mai's form slumped forward and shockingly Masako caught her before she hit the floor. Masako must have remembered she supposed to hate the girl in her arms and shoved her in Ayako's direction. Ayako grabbed her and immediately started doing a checkup.

"She seems to be fine." A breathe no one realized they were holding escaped them all. "We should wait for her to come to."

Naru nodded in her directions, "John contact the Enomoto's and tell them they can return now. Lin let's start packing up while we wait for her to wake up."

* * *

Mai woke up to a very long lecture from Naru about safety and the fussing over by Ayako and Monk. She was sore all over and Masako explained that was probably due to the forced possession, well she explained to Naru who told Mai.

"Thank you so much!" both Enomoto's bowed to the group standing in front of the cars outside their house.

"We were glad to be of help, please contact us if you ever need us to help again." Mai beamed at the couple.

Naru didn't bother to dress the couple. "Mai, let's go." Mai gave one last wave before running to the van. On her way she stumbled and bumped into Masako who was checking her bag one last time for her comb. Both Mai and the contents of Masako's bag splayed out onto the ground.

Naru bent down with a sigh and started to help his blushing assistant pick up the contents. His eyes fell on something and he picked it up curious. He read the small directions on the side and froze wide-eyed. Mai looked up to see what he was so interested in and she felt her heart jump into the heavens and her stomach plummet deep into the earth. Masako's strangled choking noise and Ayako's frantic flailing of her arms got the attention of the other males. Before any of the girls could move the guys had huddled over Naru zeroing in on what he was reading.

The first to react was John who blushed and stepped away fast. Monk stared for a moment then looked up at the panic stricken girls and succumbed to hysterical giggles unbefitting a man of his age. The only two who were still frozen over the object was the two most stoic of the group.

"Why do you have _this_?" Naru directed his question at Mai, realizing the object must belong to all the girls based of their reactions. He felt uncomfortable questioning the other two and felt a bit of anger thinking of the circumstances that would lead to his assistant taking one of those.

"Well you see… It's kind of a silly story. Not really worth mentioning." Her head swiveled back and forth turning to the other two in hopes of a rescue but Ayako was busy beating the laughing Monk and for the first time Masako didn't want to engage in a conversation with Naru. Mai thought she could even see a bit of pity in her eyes.

"Tell. Me. Now." Naru didn't like that she was avoiding the question and it only served to make him more suspicious. In desperation Mai even turned to Lin for help but only caught a slightly amused smirk before he was conveniently as looking off into the distance.

"Well… wethoughttheghostmighthaveyouknow…sowethoughtbette rsafethansorry." Her words were a garbled mess. Even Naru's super brain had a hard time keeping up.

"So these were purchased because of the nature of this case… no other circumstances led to the purchase…right?" Naru watched as Mai nodded vigorously at the first part then shook her head at the last part. "That's all I needed to know, let's go." Naru squashed the bit of relief he felt.

Mai was dreading the ride back and she could tell that Ayako and Masako were dreading it just as much but neither envied Mai of riding with the two silent men.

Naru paused and half turned to look at Mai. "Mai, that was really a stupid assumption." A half smirk played across his lip making Mai's mood worsen. A calm silent Naru in an awkward situation was bad but a sadistic teasing Naru was beyond terrible. She suddenly really envied Ayako who was stepping into a car with a still sniggering Monk.


	9. Chapter 9

Thanks for the reviews they are great!

I'm going to try to update more but no guarantees.

I do not own ghost hunt or its characters.

SPR Case File Status: Open

**Chapter 9: **Computer issues

"Shit," the low curse caught Mai's attention along with some very loud bangs; all coming from her fellow assistant's office. She realized this was the first time she really heard him curse. Her curiosity was peaked when she heard a few more loud bangs and even more vulgar words.

She had to work hard to school her face into a perfect mask when the door to the office started to open but it was for nothing. Her eyes almost bugged out of her head. Lin, like his boss Naru, always dressed impeccably but at the moment he looked… frazzled. One corner of his shirt was not tucked, a large spot of his vest was badly wrinkled and his hair was an (attractive) mess.

"Lin do you need help with something?" Mai approached him slowly like she would a wild animal and looked up into his tired eyes.

"Ah…" Lin just realized he had left his office and looked down at the smaller girl. "I'm fine Mai… I just had a small issue with my laptop, that's all." At the mention of his laptop Lin wanted to break down and destroy something.

"Your laptop?" Mai had seen the pained look on his face at the additional mention and realized what might have happened. "Oh no, I'm so sorry Lin. Do you have a backup?" Mai felt like she was comforting a friend who just lost their puppy. _That laptop was his life;_ Mai knew how much time he spent on it and couldn't imagine him without it. Scratch that, he was without it and he looked terrible.

Lin nodded his head slowly and Mai began to smile but saw his face hadn't recovered. "All that data," Lin looked devastated, "A whole month's worth gone. I have a backup but its old and with all our cases I didn't have time to make a new one."

Mai contemplated getting help from Naru but realized his insensitivity could be very damaging at the moment. "Lin, why don't you sit down for a moment while I get some tea?" She gave her best reassuring smile.

"Yes, I'll do that." Lin went and dropped down into the cushions with his face in his hands. Mai could only wonder if Naru had heard the noises next door and just chose to ignore his poor assistant. Naru usually drank earl gray or black but Main knew Lin preferred chia tea. _Naru is just going to have to drink something different today; _Mai grabbed her hidden stash of tea and picked out some chia.

Mai peeked into the lobby and felt a pang of sympathy at the sight of Lin sitting on the couch with his face in his hand. The kettle gave a shrill whistle. Mai grabbed the first cup and marched up to Naru's door. She gave a quick knock and waited for his usual acknowledgment.

"Come in." Naru glanced at the cup in her hand and remembered that he had just finished his own. He forced the corners of his mouth down when he realized she had gotten tea without him asking. Mai placed the new cup on the table and started towards the door; however, sputtering from behind caught her attention.

"Is there something wrong?" Mai's confusion quickly turned into understanding. Naru hadn't expected anything different from his usual tea and the new selection didn't meet his standards. _Well too bad, Lin's having a bad day so he gets his favorite tea for once._

"This is chia tea." Naru stared at the offending cup with pure disgust. "_Why?_" shocked beyond word, Mai stared at her boss, _he didn't notice._

"Lin's having a bad day."

"So?" Naru showed genuine confusion.

"So Naru, when a friend gets really stressed their friends do things like make them their favorite tea." Mai felt for the first time like she was talking to an elementary student with Naru.

"So, their friends have to suffer too?"

"Naru, don't waste tea because your selfish." With that said Mai left the room.

* * *

It's the first time Mai had ever been worried for the tall stoic man and she hoped it would be the last time too. He was looking better than he had just before she went into Naru's office but he still looked pretty bad.

"Here, Lin." Mai passed him a cup ad after the first sip he gave her a small smile with a raised brow. Mai was confused by the gesture so he motioned with his head to Naru's office door. "He made his complaints and I ignored them." Lin let out a small humored snort and returned to sipping his tea.

The door in question opened and what appeared to be a very calm Naru stepped out, cup in hand. He took a seat in the armchair and looked at Lin.

"What?" Lin knew what he wanted but felt like poking fun at his boss as well. _He didn't even bother to check_, Lin was a little annoyed knowing the boy had most likely heard the loud bangs coming from his office.

"I want to know the reason I have to suffer drinking _this._" Naru looked at the cup in his hand with obvious distaste.

"Laptop," Mai was confused when Naru nodded and Lin sighed. _That's it? _Mai had realized long ago that the two of them were short on words but 'laptop' amounting to an entire explanation was ridiculous.

"Reparable?" Mai swung her head in Naru's direction. _He can continue a conversation that consists of one word!? _Naru's greatness had just reached a new level, he could read people's minds, and this was mind talk. Mai couldn't think of any other explanations to the phenomenon happening before her.

"No," Lin paused and then made eye contact with Naru and then shook his head; Naru nodded then made eye contact again. _NO WORDS! They are having a conversation consisting of no words. _Mai couldn't believe it, _this goes beyond anti-social this is glossophobia _(Fear of talking).

Both men turned towards her, both wearing equally amused faces. _I was talking out loud,_ Mai was beyond embarrassed; she was mortified. Lin smirked lightly, making Mai shrink into her seat even more and Naru had on his usual scowl.

"Mai if you're going to give people random phobias then at least have the decency to keep it to yourself." Naru gave her one of his best scathing looks before turning back to his 'conversation' with Lin.

"A month," Lin sighed again and took a large sip from his tea. Mai barely managed to discern that he was referring to the data lost.

"I see, well then, I want yo—"Naru was cut off by the bell on the door ringing.

"Shibuya Physic research, how can I help you?" Naru and Lin stared stunned at the empty spot Mai had been occupying just moments ago. At the moment said girl was ushering a middle-aged man into the lobby.

"I'm from Akishima Computer Tech School and I would like to talk to the boss of this establishment about an issue we are having, my name is Katsumi Tanaka." He gave a small bow in Mai's direction then turned to give a deeper bow to the two men in the lobby.

"Lin, get the... note pad from my desk. There is a pen in the drawer." Lin nodded then reluctantly moved towards Naru's office. Mai gathered the cups and returned to the kitchenette to refill them.

Naru waited patiently for the other two to return meanwhile he watched a very nervous Mr. Tanaka fidget in his seat. Mr. Tanaka hadn't expected the boss to be so young or so normal for that matter of that Naru was sure. Naru had a feeling the man was truly in need of help because, like most desperate for help, he hadn't commented on his age.

"Here you go, sir." Mai placed a fresh cup of tea in front of him and another two on the table for Naru and Lin. Sitting down with a notepad and pen Lin signaled to Naru he was ready for him to begin.

"What brought you here?" Naru made eye contact with the jittery man for a moment before the contact was lost.

"I –we –well –the school –I'm sorry I just don't know where to start." Mai placed a comforting hand on the man's shoulder. Naru felt like rubbing his temples; today was going to hell in a hand basket. First, he was drinking chia tea and now he has a client who can't form proper thoughts.

"Just start with where and then the most prominent problem for example injuries," Naru tried hard not to sound patronizing but judging by the look on Mai's face he had failed.

"The problem is at the school I work at, Akishima Computer Tech School. I'm one of the student counselors there. I came because the staff agreed that we needed someone from the outside to investigate the problem." Mai was amazed the man didn't stutter once even though he was facing a very intimidating Naru at the moment.

"What is the problem?"

"Well you see, there's a tradition at our school that if kids wish to fight they have to do it using their computer skills. The challenger sends a written note to the intended recipient. Most challenges involve fixing a computer issue. If the problem is fixed before the day ends then the challenger loses. Recently challenge notes have been appearing more and from the same challenger as well." Mai still couldn't see why this was a supernatural problem.

"I don't see why you need our help." Apparently neither did Naru.

"Ah right, we tried to find the challenger by running the handwriting through our data base to find a match. We keep a record of each student's handwriting just in case. It didn't come up with a match for this year's class so we tried the entire history just to be sure." Mr. Tanaka started to shake. "It came up with a match; however, the person whose handwriting matched has been dead for five years!"

"Is it possib –"

"It's not a prank! After that we went around and asked about the challenges. All of the kids were scared, the people who had received a challenge from the challenger all got hurt in some way. At first it was just cuts and bruises but the more recent ones have broken bones. Rumors started going around about a mysterious boy appearing in different class rooms too!" Mai had seen many of their clients break down before but poor Mr. Tanaka was starting to pull out his hair.

"Mr. Tanaka," Mai kept her voice gentle and patted his shoulder. "It's okay calm down, try to think of everything that made you come here." Mai wanted to help this man and knew if he had anything else that might interest Naru then he should share it now.

"The most recent challenge was beyond even the professors' comprehension and when the kid failed he was found under a pile of desks that were thrown at him. He's in the hospital with a few broken bones and a bad concussion. He said no one was in the room when the desks flew at him. I investigated all the students but none of them had the intelligence and experience to come up with that challenge but…" Mr. Tanaka paled.

"The dead boy was capable, I assume." Mr. Tanaka nodded. Naru glanced at Lin who was struggling to write down all of the information, obviously not used to pen and paper. "We'll take the case. Prepare three rooms for us to use and make sure one of them has plenty of outlets." Naru didn't think that last request would be a problem seeing as they were going to a computer tech school.

"Yes, of course." The relief on Mr. Tanaka's face made Mai smile.

* * *

Naru sat heavily in his office chair. "Mai-," Naru paused remembering the aftertaste of chia in his mouth. _All I ask from her is good tea; I don't even complain that much when she falls asleep, but no, Lin's had a bad day so he gets 'his favorite tea'._ Naru glared at the folder in his hand.

He was so focused on the file he didn't even notice when a hot cup was set next to him. It wasn't until the delicious smell of earl grey reached his nose did he realize. A small smile graced his face and he set down his file to sip his favorite tea.


	10. Chapter 10

I'm surprised do many people have read my story so thanks so much.

I just took a five hour exam so I apologize if there are spelling and grammar errors

I do not own ghost hunt or any of its wonderful characters!

SPR Case File Status: Open

**Chapter 10**: Computer Envy

Mai chose not to say anything that morning when Lin packed the broken laptop but only now she realized he packed it unconsciously. His forlorn gaze made her regret that choice. Naru, for once, refrained from commenting on his assistant's behavior.

"Lin, leave the equipment inside the van for now. We'll get it after we see the rooms." Lin nodded. "Ah, but Mai grab one of the thermometers for temperature measurements while they show us around." Naru gave Lin a comforting pat on his shoulder before grabbing his files out of the van.

"He's never like that when I'm upset." Mai grumbled pulling one of the little machines from the box. Lin stood next to the van but he heard the brunette's complaint and a small smirk spread on his face.

"Mai stop complaining." One glance of Lin's smirk and Naru knew Mai had said something about him behind his back. He could guess what it was about too.

"How do you know I was complaining?" Mai spun around to face the overly pompous teen.

"Unlike you, I pay attention to my surroundings." Naru turned the other way to hide his own smirk.

"Taniyama, please move aside I need to get some files." Lin's smirk vanished but the amusement still shone in his eyes.

"Mr. Shibuya?" A small girl –even smaller than Mai –stood at the doors of the school. She was pretty in a nerdy way, her dull brown hair reached mid-back and her small oval glasses hid quaint features.

"Yes," Mai's opinion of the girl skyrocketed when the girl leveled an equally disinterested gaze at Naru. "Are you here to guide us to our rooms?" The girl hadn't fawned over his looks or showed shock at his age, she merely bowed to him.

"Yes, my name is Hana Kondo, please follow –!" Hana suddenly cut herself off and an intense interest lit her eyes that fixed upon… Lin. "That's –that's the newest model from China! It said to have exceptional speed and excellent graphic abilities." Hana disappeared for a moment then reappeared at Lin's side examining his side intently. "May I?" She looked back at Naru obviously asking him for some sort of permission.

"Yes…" Naru found the girl curious and that probably contributed to his answer but mostly he wanted to observe his stoic guardian's reaction. Lin managed a quick glare at the young scientist before returning his gaze to the tiny girl. She reached his elbow barely and paid no mind to his obvious discomfort at her close proximity.

Lin backed up and she stepped forward like a jungle cat stalking its prey. Before Lin could say anything Hana snatched the object in his arms and pulled away. "It's beautiful and in good shape too, perhaps a little worn but well taken care of." Hana flipped the black rectangle in her hands over.

Mai breathed a sigh of relief, she hadn't seen Lin pick up anything and now she realized he probably picked up the laptop out of habit. She worried that she might have to save the older man from the small Hana. Turns out her first hunch was right, Hana found little interest in guys and more interest in her hobbies a.k.a. computers.

"I'm sorry; it seems this masterpiece belongs to you. I should have asked you for permission." Hana's eyes never left the computer but her body turned slightly in Lin's direction.

"Ah, it's fine." Lin was still a little pale but much calmer than before. He wanted to get far away from the strange girl but something she said made him curious. "Why do you assume it's mine?"

"I just do. It's a kind of skill I have. Like dogs and their owners, computers resemble their owners as well." She glanced briefly in acknowledgement before peering into the fans of the laptop.

Naru cleared his throat loudly, "If you don't mind, I would like to see the rooms?" He enjoyed the little spectacle but now he wanted to get started on the case. Hana slowly removed herself from the laptop and made eye contact with Naru.

"Oh right, follow me." She started up the steps but stopped on the second one. "Um… Can I look at it more later?" Lin gave a small nod and tucked the laptop under his arm. "Great!"

"Here's the base room and the two rooms on either side have been cleared out so you can rest there. The cots are in the supplies closet down the hall. The vice principal wanted to apologize for not showing you around himself. He was called to a meeting about the recent incidents and will see that you are comfortable later this afternoon." Hana spoke quickly making it hard for Mai to understand all of the information.

"Thank you for showing us to our rooms, you may go." Naru nodded to Hana but she didn't move. _Is something wrong_, Mai thought, _most people don't stick around; did she forget to say something?_ Hana shifted from foot to foot nervously and kept glancing at Lin. _Oh_, _she wants to look at the laptop again,_ Mai realized.

"If it isn't too much trouble can I look at the laptop now?" Hana looked like a puppy waiting for its reward. Mai covered a grin at the sight of the tiny girl begging Lin for his laptop. Lin turned to Naru half pleading him to say no so he could escape but Naru's scientist nature once again took hold and he nodded to Hana.

* * *

The air's tension made it difficult for Mai to focus. Naru had left her there probably so he could ask her what happened later after he got back from prowling the school. This being a tech school probably had him overflowing with excitement; Mai could imagine Naru examining all the high tech things.

A long sigh drew Mai's attention back to what she would later have to report on. Lin sat in usual desk spot but currently a very small girl sat in close proximity poring over his precious laptop. Poor Lin had nothing to do without his laptop working and so he sat their watching the girl.

"May I turn it on?" Mai covered a giggle. Lin shifted uncomfortably under Hana's intense stare.

"It won't turn on… it broke a few days ago." Lin's shoulders slumped and he leaned heavily into his chair.

"It broke…" Hana looked as disheartened as Lin. "What happened?" Her hands stroked the laptop gently.

"At first it just lost data but when I tried to start it up there was no response." She nodded somberly to this and turned the laptop over again.

"Perhaps… If you don't mind having me in here a while, I could try to fix it." Mai saw the inner conflict Lin was having; he wanted to get it fixed but the girl made him uncomfortable.

"We will be very busy in this room and we will probably need to bring in people for interviews but I'm sure Lin would love your help. If it doesn't particularly matter where it's done you could work on it in the girl's room." Lin's grateful look made Mai happy she decided to step in. "The others shouldn't arrive for a while so the room will be quite."

"That's great! I don't mind changing location." Hana beamed and followed Mai out of the base.

"So, how old are you Miss Kondo?" Hana didn't seem like the sort to converse well outside of her comfortable field of expertise but Mai was curious about the little girl who could shake up the ever stoic Lin.

"Just Hana is fine, I'm twenty three." Mai didn't have time to cover her shock; _she looks like she could be in middle school! _"I get that a lot but this is a post-graduation tech school so you'd think people would realize."

"Ah, you're right, by the way have you seen any paranormal activity?"

"Like ghosts? No, but I did watch one of the seniors take on a challenge from the mystery challenger." Mai opened the door to the girl's room for Hana. "He had to find and fix a software mistake before three hours were up; however, the mistake was in a file that didn't affect the computers working ability so it appeared to have no problems. It took too long to find and he failed."

"Wow, I didn't realize computers were so… complicated."

"Though, I saw the problem within the first few minutes."

"Why didn't you help him?" Mai had heard people got hurt from failing the mystery challenge so, why didn't she help him if she knew!?

"It's against the rule to help. Only the challenged can fix the problem, if I were to intervene he would lose automatically and the stakes of losing would double." Hana sat on the floor with the laptop in front of her.

"Oh, that makes sense… do you know if there is a pattern to the challenges?"

"What is this, an interrogation?"

"Oh sorry, I just kind of started without realizing." Mai blushed and looked down at her feet. Talking to Hana felt like talking to Naru, she was very smart and blunt.

"I guess the ghost is trying to find the smartest kid in school."

"Why not just look at ranking then?"

"We don't have set rankings in this school because it causes too much discord between the students. We do have a class genius title so to speak. The person who is considered the best by both students and teachers is called the techy." Hana started to disassemble Lin's laptop as she spoke.

"Who's the techy now?" Mai had taken her thinking pose with her hand on her chin.

"You're looking at her right now." Mai was confused but slowly it dawned on her and once again the small girl shocked her. "I'm the current techy of the school aside from me no one else has a ranking."

"Then why haven't you been challenged yet?" If what Hana assumed was the pattern was true then her not being targeted didn't make sense.

"Do I look like the techy to you? No, of course not, who in their right mind would see a girl the size of a middle school kid as a tech genius?" Hana's face scrunched up in irritation. "This challenger probably took one look at me and underestimated me like everybody else."

"I guess your size is a disadvantage." Mai felt bad but couldn't really understand enough to know what to say.

"Disadvantage? Disadvantage!? No, this is a curse! No one takes me seriously and when I send a challenge and they lose they make excuses. 'I didn't sleep well so it was hard to focus.' or 'the computer had other problems from the start that you didn't notice'. The only reason I _earned_ the title techy was because they were too chicken to take me on again." Hana was red faced and her small hands in tight fists at her side. "I just want someone to see me for what I am, a real computer genius, and not a little kid." Hana started to tear up and hid it by returning her focus to the lap top.

Mai really felt badly for her but didn't know what to say so she excused herself and left to set up the base for interviews. Lind didn't say anything when she walked in but turned towards her and gave her a questioning look.

"She just started fixing it when I left." Lin nodded but before turning completely he turned back.

"Did you find anything out from her?"

"Uh, yeah, the ghost is trying to find the best computer genius at this school. The school doesn't have a ranking system but there is a title for the greatest genius. They call that person the techy." Lin opened his mouth to speak but before he could say anything Mai cut him off. "Hana is the techy but… the ghost didn't take notice of her."

"You say that like it's a bad thing." The familiar voice made Mai jump and she turned to see Monk standing in the doorway. John and Ayako were behind him trying to see past him.

"Monk, Ayako, and John you're here!" Mai jumped into Monks open arms and giggled when he swung her around nearly hitting Ayako.

"How nice of you Mai to mention me too," _that sarcastic drawl could only be one person, Masako_. Mai peeked around Monk and gave her a quick apologetic smile that wasn't reciprocated. _Geez what got her panties in a bunch, _Mai got her answer promptly.

"Aw, Masako don't tell me your still upset Naru didn't personally call you to tell you about the case." Ayako sneered and poked Masako's side teasingly. The kimono clad girl flinched away and stuck her nose into the air with a, humph.

"He doesn't personally call me." Her shoulders slumped, a little hurt by her own words. "I'm angry because I sent him an apology because I wouldn't be able to make it and he ignored it."

"Then why are you here?" Mai's confusion was justified but Masako acted exasperated all the same.

"Obviously Mai whatever had her preoccupied was cancelled, I thought even you would realize that." Masako didn't get her chance to dis Mai because as usual Naru beat her to it. Masako should have felt satisfied but the way Naru smirked at Mai every time he managed to piss Mai off left a bad taste in Masako's mouth.

"She didn't specify that, did she Naru? She could be ditching her other appointments too!" Masako looked appalled at the idea. Naru's smirk didn't fade but he turned away to address someone behind him.

"Everyone please take a seat inside the principal would like to give us a summary of recent events." The rest of the group filed in and sat down on the various computer chairs in the room.

"Hello, I am the principal of this school Hotaka Kita." The man was tall and thin with large coke bottle glasses. He bowed to the room and when he stood up the tired loo in his eyes revealed more about the situation than his words ever could.

* * *

Sorry for the slow updates! I'm trying to battle writers block and excessive homework!


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